Inheritance
by agwp2010
Summary: Sarah is gone and has left a special gift for her granddaughter. (Y/N) is forced to accept the inheritance by her family, which means moving to America and into an old mansion. The art is not mine and thanks for reading this. This is a sequel, so go read my other unit story first please!
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own Hetalia, just this story. Look, a sequel! Enjoy this and thanks for reading!**

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"Have you taken care of the others poppet?"

"Yeah Ollie, I made sure to spend enough time with each before the end. I'm so sorry it came down to this."

"Oh, poppet, please don't blame yourself. If anything, it was my entire fault this happened."

"Oliver, don't you ever say that. You were doing what you thought was right at the time. I just wish others saw it that way."

"Alright, if you insist my dear. I think it's time now, don't you?"

"Yeah Ollie, I do. I love you."

"I love you too Sarah, I love you too."

A button pressed and Oliver's eyes slipped closed as he fell down on the bed. Sarah stood up and walked out his door and towards the entrance. She took one look back at the house before walking out the front door. She didn't look back as she left with tears streaming down her face, never to return to the mansion.

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I was always close to my grandmother, as I spent most of my time there. The earliest memory I have of her is a story she used to tell me. She liked to call it a modern Snow White; two girls and nine men living together as a happy family. They stayed together and didn't let anyone come in between them, no matter what. The story always fascinated me, because she seemed to tell it in chapters. Each time I was there, a new part was added to the story. One day the girls met a new member, another they were shopping in a mall. In one part the oldest girl had run off, just ran away and left them behind, and everyone searched for her. They came back together in the end.

Later I learned that the two girls were my grandmother and my great aunt. I often asked my grandmother who the men were, to her and in general, but I would never get a clear answer. One time she called them brothers, another fathers, and another sons. All I ever knew was their names: Matthew, Feliciano, Lovino, Albert, Ludwig, Lovino again, Oliver, Allen, and Gilbert. There were no pictures that I knew of. They were just men to me, but I could tell they were more to her. I would always ask her where they were now, but always got the same answer.

"Grandma, where do they live? Are they happy there?"

"They live in America (Y/N). They aren't happy, they aren't sad, they are just there. They hang between worlds."

It was always some variation of this, no matter what I asked. Soon I resorted to asking my great aunt, since she always seemed to be with grandma. "Hey, Auntie, do you remember Oliver? What happened to him?"

"That's for your grandmother to tell, not me (Y/N)," she would reply. Her response never changed, neither of them did, so I eventually stopped asking. I think I stopped when I was 13, the age grandma introduced me to her favorite show.

"(Y/N), come here for a minute," she called to me, motioning to the spot next to her on the couch. I quickly moved to her side, expecting another chapter for the story. "I want to show you something very special," she said quietly. Grandma pressed a button next to her and the holographic screen came to life. "Open folder H."

I watched as the screen immediately opened up to a listing of episodes. Each one was labelled at five minutes long and started with the word Hetalia. "Grandma, what is this?" I asked her. I looked up and noticed a melancholy smile on her face.

"This, my child, is one of the few things I hold dear to me. It comes a close second to you," she explained. I nodded, as though I understood, but was slightly annoyed that I hadn't gotten a real answer. "You know, Kiki would love to watch these with us. Would you go get her for me?" I nodded and got up to find my aunt. She was in the kitchen, waiting for a bag of popcorn to be created by the 3D food maker.

"Auntie, grandma said she was starting something called Hetalia and wanted to know if you would like to come watch with us," I told her.

"Ooh, Sarah is firing up the old files again. Let me just get my popcorn and I'll be right over. Man, I miss microwaves," Aunt Kiki replied, muttering the last bit to herself. I waited as she got her popcorn and followed me back to the couch. When she sat down I ended up sandwiched between the two, but was given the popcorn to hold. Grandma started the very first episode and we spent the rest of the day watching Hetalia, which I grew to love just as much as they did.

In all the time I knew my grandmother, we would watch Hetalia together every day. Oddly though, she would always get emotional if Romano, Canada, Germany, Prussia, HRE, ChibiRomano, or Chibitalia showed up on screen. I asked her about it, but she would never answer.

In all the time I knew my grandmother, there were two questions she would never give me answers to. Why do you sometimes cry during certain parts of Hetalia? Who were the men from your modern Snow White?

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"(Y/N), the service is about to start, get your butt over here," my mother said. She grabbed my arm and pulled me towards the folding chairs. They were underneath a covered pavilion and faced the direction the sun would set. There was already a large crowd gathered in the chairs, eerily silent as they stared towards the center. My mother sat my body down in a front row chair, obviously annoyed by my inability to give any reaction.

I knew it was exasperating to her, and that she was probably sadder than I was, but this is just how I could cope with it all. I looked to the seat next to me and saw my aunt, quietly dabbing a handkerchief to her eyes. I quickly looked away, instead setting my sight straight ahead of me. I tried to drown out the silence as a man stood at the very front of the pavilion, behind the large wooden box. "We have come today not to grieve a death, but to celebrate a life. Sarah Gage was a lively woman and she will be sorely missed," the man began.

He droned on for about an hour, talking about my grandmother like he had personally known her. About halfway through the ceremony the grey London skies began their own lament. They opened up and allowed the sun to shine through for the first time in weeks. I found it fitting that London finally allowed the sun to shine through on my grandmother; she had been saying how much she missed it. A wry smile appeared on my lips, the only emotion I had shown since we got the news.

The ceremony continued for another three hours, most of which was spent with people I had never met talking about my grandmother like they knew her. I wasn't allowed to go up there, my mother wouldn't let me. Instead I sat there, emotionless, and let the words wash over me. When we were finally done I stood up and walked over to the open casket. My grandmother was dressed in a Hetalia shirt and jeans, as specified in her will, and wore no makeup. She was probably the most beautiful dead person I have ever seen.

"Excuse me, are you (Y/N)?" a soft voice asked me. I turned around to face a man who was slightly taller than me. He had brown, curly hair and blue eyes magnified by thick framed glasses. I nodded to his question and gave a small wave. "We are about to read the will, and you are required to be present," he explained.

"Please, lead the way," I managed to say. He nodded and began to walk towards the building at the front of the cemetery. I sent one final gaze to my grandmother and waved good bye to her. Cool air washed over me when the door opened to allow me in. I followed the man to a back room where my mother, father, aunt, and uncle were already sitting. My uncle was on one side of my mother with my father on the other. I took the open seat next to my aunt and placed my hand over hers.

"Now, concerning the will, there are only two sentences that comprise it. They read as follows. 'I will all my money and estate in America to my granddaughter (Y/N) immediately and without delay. Everything else, except my London estate and anything within which goes to Kiki, is to be split between the rest of my blood related relatives.' Are there any questions?" the man asked.

I was staring at him wide-eyed. I didn't know grandma had owned an estate in America, she had said she always lived in London. Was that where the men were? "Yes, I have a question. Why in the hell does my daughter get the American estate _and_ the money?" my mother shrieked.

"Oh calm down honey, let (Y/N) take the estate, she is old enough," my aunt said. She wasn't wrong. I was 18 years old, old enough to legally live by myself and all that. My aunt and mother continued to fight for a few minutes before mother finally conceded.

"(Y/N) will be leaving tomorrow morning for America. She does not need to bring a suitcase, only a carryon bag. Transportation to the airport has also been provided to her," the man explained. Mother and father nodded before standing up and ushering us out the door. I spent another car ride listening to them lecture me about the dangers of America and everything I should be wary of.

I spent the night tossing and turning in bed, unable to sleep at all. By the time morning came I was pretty sure only two of the ten hours had been spent asleep. The morning was a blur of duffel bags, breakfast, coffee, and car rides. By the time I was seated in first class on the plane I had no idea what had happened. All I was sure about was the new card in my hand, connected to a massive bank account, the fact that I still haven't cried over the loss of my beloved grandmother, and that I had no idea what I was doing. I was sure about one thing though.

Maybe I'll finally get some answers.

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 **I hope you guys enjoyed that chapter and I'm really excited to finally be posting this sequel! Thanks for reading, leave your comments, and look forward to the next chapter.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own Hetalia, but if I did all my money would go towards Hetalia Units! So, you guys made me so happy with all the favorites, follows, and reviews on the last chapter. Seriously, I was smiling all day today because of it! So, here is the next chapter! There is important stuff at the end of this, so please read that author note too. Thanks for reading and enjoy!**

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"Here you are Miss, the pillow you asked for," a flight attendant said to me. I thanked her quietly and gently took the pillow. She nodded and walked away, leaving me to my thoughts. There was no one with me in the two person row, so I was left to having a conversation with myself. I quickly tucked the pillow behind my neck and reclined my chair slightly, trying to stay mindful of the people behind me. I closed my eyes and tried to get some much needed sleep for the rest of the ride.

Ok, that idea really didn't work, which left me bored and alone for a plane ride that was over five hours long. I glanced around, looking for something to do, when my eyes landed on my duffel bag. Well, I did put some books in there for this exact purpose; I might as well start reading them. Once I had the duffel bag in my lap I began to rummage through it. Eventually I found a large scrapbook I didn't remember packing. I pulled it out slowly and noticed the sticky note on the front cover.

 _(Y/N),_

 _Thought you might want this. It will prove helpful once you get to the mansion._

 _-Auntie Kiki_

I smiled and carefully placed the sticky note in my bag, not wanting to lose it any time soon. I looked at the front cover and saw that it had different flags on it, all of which were surrounding the word "Family". There were three Italian flags, one German, one English, one American, one Canadian, an old Prussian flag, and a Holy Roman Empire flag. I opened the front cover and gasped.

The first picture was of my grandmother and aunt, only younger and surrounded by Hetalia characters. I recognized Italy, two Romanos, Germany, Prussia, and Canada. The only ones I didn't recognize was one who seemed like a younger version of Germany, a man with strawberry blond hair and England's eyebrows, and another man with America's jacket and red hair. They all looked really happy in the picture, especially my grandmother. She looked happier than she has ever been.

I quickly flick through the rest of the pictures, coming across so many more with them. I learn the strawberry blonde is Oliver, the red head is Allen, and the Germany look alike is Al. I quickly recognized Allen and Oliver as second players and became even more curious. Soon the others have names too and I finally know who the men from the stories are. They're Hetalia characters, this whole time they were Hetalia characters. I go through the book and take in all the pictures, recognizing some as real life scenes from grandma's stories. There's one though that catches my attention.

It has grandma, but none of the Hetalia characters are there. Instead, there is a guy with sandy blonde hair and a girl with short black hair. Grandma is laughing, the other girl has an amused smile, and the guy has a confidant smirk on his face. The caption reads "Sarah, Carlson, and Kiersten celebrating the 100th joke." What's that about? The 100th joke about what? I shrug and continue on through the scrapbook, smiling as I relive my grandmother's tales. I went through the scrapbook with two hours left of the plane ride. I ended up falling asleep with the scrapbook clutched to my body, like I thought I was going to lose it or something.

The jolting of the plane landing is what woke me up. I had to quickly wipe the sleep from my eyes as the plane went towards the gate. My leg bounced impatiently as the plane went through final checks before finally opening the door and letting us leave. I rushed off the plane as fast as I could and walked into the airport. There were lots of people around me, but I didn't pay attention to them, I focused on getting to the front of the airport.

My battle through the airport was intense. I was constantly excusing myself and apologizing as I moved through the crowds. One man tried to take something from my duffel bag, but I caught him in the act and he ran. Another couple asked me to say random words for them, enraptured by my accent. Dear lord, Americans are ridiculous. Don't they realize that they're the ones with an accent from my point of view? You don't hear me going around and asking the Americans to say howdy!

Finally I made it to the front of the airport and began searching for the taxi arranged for me. I saw a man with a sign that had my name on it. He looked a lot like that guy from the photo I saw, from the confidant smile to the sandy blonde hair, despite being as old as my grandmother was. He was standing in front of an old looking SUV and was searching the crowd. I walked up next to him and tapped his shoulder. "This may sound weird, but is your name Carlson?" I ask him.

He looks over at me and smiles, pulling me into a hug. I instantly freeze up and panic, a strange man was hugging me and I was freaking. "It's so good to see you again (Y/N)! You probably don't remember me, since the last time you were here you were a baby. To answer the question, yes, I am Carlson," he says. He puts me down and grabs my duffel bag, throwing it into the back seat of the car. "Come on, we got to get you to the mansion."

I nod and climb into the passenger seat, which honestly confuses me because it is on the wrong side. The cars in London have the drivers on the right and passengers on the left, but it is switched here in America. Even the side of the road you drive on is switched; I nearly had a heart attack because I thought the man was driving in the wrong lane. "So, how long have you known my grandmother?" I ask, trying to break the ice.

"I've known her since high school. We had theatre together, but one day she told everyone off and quit. We hung out after school and kept in touch when we graduated. Man, she was a bunch of fun; it's hard to believe she's gone. You know, you look just like her," he says, rambling slightly.

"I've heard that a lot, actually. I don't really see the resemblance, but others do," I tell him. He takes his eyes off the road long enough to give me an incredulous look. I shift awkwardly as he looks back at the road.

"Now, that's not true at all. You have the same hair and eyes hell; even your face is shaped the same as when she was your age," he protests. I sigh and shrug my shoulders, allowing a silence to fall over us. The scenery flashes by, changing from city to suburb in about twenty minutes. I decide to break the silence again by asking a question that has been nagging at me.

"Hey, I happen to have this scrapbook with me. In it is a picture of you, my grandmother, and a girl named Kiersten and you all look happy. The caption said it was the 100th joke. I was wondering, what was it the 100th joke of?" I ask him.

Carlson starts cracking up at the wheel and practically doubles over his wheel. "Oh man, she still had that? We had this contest going to see how many Jew jokes we could get through before the end of the year. Our goal was 100, so when we reached it we had Oliver take a picture of us as celebration," he explained. He wiped away a tear and chuckled some more.

I couldn't help but smile as well; his laugh was pretty infectious. I noticed the car pull into a fancy looking neighborhood and go towards the very end of one of the streets. "Which house is mine?" I ask him.

"This one," he says, pulling up to one of the larger houses. It has two stories and a separate garage. I can tell there are a lot of rooms, because of all the windows, but none of the lights are on. Carlson pulls into the driveway and parks the car. He gets out without a word and pulls my duffel bag from the back seat. I hop out and stand by my closed door, staring up at the house. "Well, this is where I leave you. This is actually Sarah's old car, mine is on the street over there. Keys are under the mat on the side door, the alarm isn't on, and this is where I leave you. I'll send my grandson over later if you need it. Good luck (Y/N)," he tells me. With those final words Carlson walks away, towards his car, and leaves me in the driveway.

I sigh and pick up my duffel bag, no point in staying out here. I walked over to the door and lifted up the mat to grab the key. The lock was rusty, but at least it worked. I kept the key with me when I walked into the house, locking the door behind me. Looking around, I realized I was in a kitchen, an old one too. All the equipment in here was from when my grandmother was younger, there was even a microwave.

I made my way through the kitchen and found myself in a living room. I was too tired to explore though, so I went down the first hall on the left. The first door had my grandmother's name on it, so I decided to crash there for the night. I instantly collapsed on the bed and decided I would explore tomorrow before falling into a grateful sleep.

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 **I promise the units will show up in the next chapter, or at least one of them will! I promise! Anyway, two things to tell you guys! The first thing is that I want to know what units you guys would like to see. When deciding, please keep in mind that I do accept second players and all that. Second thing, you guys should totally go read the story by MemeTeamers, they are a new author on here and I know y'all are going to have fun with their story. That's everything for now. Thanks for reading, comment on your thoughts, and look forward to the next chapter.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I do not own Hetalia, just this story. Guys, I really need to know what units you want to see! It's super important! Also, thanks for reading and enjoy the chapter.**

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I was awoken from a deep sleep by my phone ringing erratically. I halfheartedly reached for it on the bedside table and winced against the bright light. The first thing I noticed was the time; 4:30 in the morning for Americans. The second thing I noticed was that my aunt was the caller. "Good morning Auntie, you do realize it's 4:30 here right?" I ask her.

"Oh my, I quite forgot, what with it being 9:30 over here, I was just calling to see how the flight was and if you had met anyone…interesting yet," she replied.

"Auntie, I don't even get up at 9:30 in London, why would my being in America change that? Anyway, I met Carlson yesterday since he was my ride from the airport. He seemed nice enough, he even promised to send his grandson over to check on me today."

"I remember meeting Conrad; he's a very nice boy. I certainly hope he didn't get his grandfather's sense of humor."

"Right, look Auntie, I love chatting with you and all, but I'm really tired right now. Can I go back to sleep? I promise to call you later."

"Right, of course. Oh, one more thing, if you get hungry you should go to the room with a maple leaf or a cupcake on the door. I'll chat with you later sweetie, bye now." She hung up and I listened to the dial tone for a few minutes. What did she mean by that? Was I actually awake enough to go find out?

I decided I wasn't, so I placed the phone down and rolled over in the large bed. I closed my eyes and tried to get some sleep, but questions were just swirling through my mind and I couldn't calm them down. "Well, let's go on an adventure," I muttered angrily, getting out of bed and leaving the cozy room. I decided to be lazy and stay in my own hallway.

My feet were able to slowly shuffle down the hall and I looked for the door with a maple leaf. I opened the door with no hesitation and was slapped over the head with how Canadian the room was. There were flags everywhere, everything was in red and white, that was a collection of hockey sticks right there, and that was a polar bear. I tried to take it all in at once, but became distracted by the body sized lump underneath the covers next to the polar bear. I walked towards it hesitantly and pulled back the top cover.

Underneath was a boy around my age with blonde hair and a curl sticking out the front of his head? I recognized him as Matthew from the pictures and Canada from the show. I noticed a note placed on top of his red sweater with handwriting that looked a lot like grandma's. I picked the note up and carefully unfolded it. "Say I can see you loudly?" I whispered to myself. Shrugging my shoulders, I placed the note down and turned back to the seemingly lifeless body. "I can see you," I say loudly.

Almost instantly his eyes snap open, revealing violet orbs behind his glasses. He blinks a few times and rubs his eyes as though he had been asleep for a really long time. He looks around the room a bit and finally seems to notice me. "Good morning Sarah, is it time for school already?" he asks me, voice soft and quiet.

"I'm not Sarah, my name is (Y/N). I'm Sarah's granddaughter," I tell him. His eyes seem to widen and he gives me another look before blushing slightly.

"Sorry about that, you just look a lot like Sarah. My name is Matthew Williams, but you can call me anything really. Could you tell me where Sarah is?" he asks again. I fidget a bit and bite my lip, wondering if I should actually tell him the truth.

"I think I'll call you Matthew for now. I'm not really sure how to tell you this, but Sarah died a week ago," I whispered. I glance up at his face and notice his widened eyes and the tears already forming there. "Oh, please don't cry! Let's go make pancakes. Grandma always said pancakes made things better," I said quickly. I pulled him out of the bed and was able to find my way to the kitchen.

I sit Matthew down at the table while I hurry around the kitchen and locate pancake ingredients. Somehow I manage to find everything and make the batter, thanks to Auntie for teaching me. The only thing that stumps me, however, is the stove. I've never used such an old model before; the ones at home were the latest version. I stared down at my retro enemy and think back to any hologram shows that used one. A memory appears of a woman turning the nob at the bottom and a fire coming up, so that's what I do. A happy smile makes its way to my face as I pour in the first pancake.

A little while later and I have two stacks of pancakes finished, and I somehow managed to not burn any of them. I place them on the table and look for maple syrup, placing that on the table when I find it. "There we go, pancakes to make you smile," I say to Matthew, who had been silent for a while.

"Thanks," he mutters. He takes the syrup bottle and pours most of it onto his plate, making it spill over the edges. Matthew places it down and begins to eat. I take the syrup and poor the rest onto my stack of pancakes. "These taste like mine, how did you do that?" he asks me, breaking the silence.

"My aunt taught me, she said she learned the recipe from an old friend. Auntie Kiki was always really happy if she could bake," I told him, speaking around the pancakes in my mouth. I swallowed and noticed the look on his face. Matthew seemed to be sad, happy, and melancholic at the same time.

"Is Kiki still alive?" he asks me. I nod my head and Matthew gives a small smile, the first one I have seen from him. He seems happier as he takes another bite of the pancake stack before him, which I realize he is already over halfway through. "Do you think I could talk to her?"

I nod and hold my finger up, asking for a moment, and pull out my phone. I decide to use the holographic call function and allow them to see each other. "Ok, so she'll appear as a hologram and she will be able to see you," I tell him, placing the phone on the table in front of him.

"I thought you were still sleeping dearie, what are you doing up?" Auntie Kiki's voice asks. She doesn't appear on the hologram, which means she is doing something as she talks. Matthew brightens up at the sound of her voice and scoots closer to the table.

"Hi Kiki, I just woke up a little bit ago," Matthew says to the holographic image of Auntie's bedroom. Auntie Kiki pokes her head onto the screen and her face explodes into a smile, lighting her up with a youthful glow despite her age.

"Mattie! I didn't realize (Y/N) had woken anybody up yet! It's been so long and you haven't aged a day. That's rather unfair you know," she rambles. She continues on, talking about anything and everything that comes to mind as Matthew includes an opinion on occasion.

"So, Sarah is really dead, huh?" Matthew asks, causing Auntie's face to fall. I leave the kitchen before the conversation can make me cry. I decide that wandering through the house is a good idea; I should know the layout of it if I'm going to live here. My wandering leads me to a darker hallway than any of the others, giving it a slightly creepy aura.

I begin to consider leaving the hall, but recognize the shape of a cupcake on one of the doors. Auntie Kiki had said to open that one too, so why not now? I wonder which character this one will be, though I can't think of any that like cupcakes. When I push open the door I feel attacked by the pure pinkness of the room.

There was pink everywhere and cupcakes and jars of something and knives. Why were there knives in this room? I finally see the bed and recognize the shape of a person again, resting their head on a cupcake pillow. He has strawberry blond hair, bushy eyebrows, and freckles everywhere. Then I realize this is the Oliver from the photos, a 2p character. I pick up the paper note next to his head and read it silently. "I've never had a cupcake before," I say loudly.

"Oh, you don't realize how good it is to hear your accent poppet."

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 **See, I told you there would be units in this chapter! Aren't you proud of me? Thanks for reading, comment your thoughts, and look forward to the next chapter.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: No, I still don't own Hetalia, much to my disdain. So, I have decided that Friday and Saturday are me days, so I won't be posting new chapters on those days. However, if I go a long time without posting over the week, I will post on one of those days. Thanks for reading and enjoy the chapter!**

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I stare at the man who was now sitting up in the bed and smiling at me. I tried to remember everything that grandmother had told me about Oliver, but seeing him awake just made me think of the fandom version. "Oh, you aren't Sarah, that's such a shame. Poppet, are you alright? You look a little pale," he said, getting up from the bed and walking towards me.

"Sorry, I'm fine, positively chipper in fact," I replied nervously, trying to keep myself calm.

"That's just wonderful! Now, can you tell me if anyone else is awake and where Sarah is?" he asks, moving past me and out the door. I stand frozen for a moment, but quickly move to follow him out the door. "Oh, Mattie, I see you're awake too. Did the poppet happen to tell you where Sarah is?" I hear him ask as I approach the kitchen. I don't hear Matthew's response, but the kitchen becomes eerily quiet.

I walk in to find Matthew still sitting at the table, but the hologram phone is off. Oliver is staring down at the floor and I realize that he is crying. "Oliver, are you alright?" I ask, slowly approaching him. I couldn't stand to see anyone cry, even if I didn't know them personally.

"Who are you? Why are you even here?" he whispers, looking up at me with tear filled eyes. Despite the tears, I can see the anger behind them and it scares me.

"My name is (Y/N) and I'm here because my grandmother left me this house in her will. I'm sorry if you want her instead of me, but we're both out of luck right there," I say, speaking in a calm voice as I take a few more steps towards Oliver. When I get close enough, I wrap him in a hug, patting his back as he sobs. I notice Matthew staring at us and crying as well, so I open an arm to invite him in.

Matthew gladly accepts and we end up in a group hug together. We stand like that for a few minutes as I let them each cry on my shoulders. Once they've calmed down a good bit, I pull away and allow my arms to drop to my sides as I look at them. "So, where are the others?" I ask them.

"They must still be asleep. We're probably the only ones you woke up," Matthew explains, glancing down the hall he came from. "We need to tell them."

"You're right and I think you two should do it," I tell them.

"Why do you say that?" Oliver asks, tilting his head in confusion.

"They don't exactly know me and it would be weird if a complete stranger told them that someone they loved is dead. They would feel more comfortable hearing it from you," I explained. They nodded and walked down the hallway Matthew was in.

I sighed and watched them go before walking into another room. I was going to assume this was the living room, based on the large couches and a screen on the wall. I furrowed my brows at the screen and touched it, almost expecting my hand to go through it like the holograms at home. I frowned when my fingertips touched cool glass and pushed against it to make sure it really was solid. Eventually I had determined that it was, in fact, a solid object and wasn't going anywhere. I plopped down on the couch and pulled out my phone, seeing that I have a message from one of my friends.

" _How's America going? Has tea been dumped on you yet?"-Kim_

" _No, not yet, though a lot of people in the airport asked me to say crumpets."-(Y/N)_

" _Sounds like fun! Meet any cute guys yet?"-Kim_

"… _Yes? It's a little hard to explain."-(Y/N)_

" _Details, now! I want them!"-Kim_

" _Maybe later when I know I have time, but I should get going for now."-(Y/N)_

" _Fine, but you're telling me later. Bye!"-Kim_

" _Sure thing. Talk to you later. Bye"-(Y/N)_

I sighed and turned my phone off, watching the screen go dark, before lying down on the couch. I looked up at the ceiling and wondered what was going on with Oliver and Matthew right now. My eyes followed one of the boards on the fan as it spun around and I began to zone out.

Suddenly, and out of nowhere, a head popped over the side of the couch and into my vision. "Hiya doll," it says.

"HOLY SHIT!" I yell, sitting up quickly and banging our foreheads together. My hands fly to my head and I hold it as a sudden headache takes over. I hear groans of pain from the other side of the couch. I poke my head over the edge and look down the owner of the head that scared me. The guy had reddish brown hair, red eyes, a missing tooth, and sunglasses resting in front of his cowlick. "What the heck was that for?" I asked him.

"I could ask ya the same thing doll! Ya didn't hafta bang my damn head," he counters, his southern accent becoming stronger.

"You're the one that scared me! You should be apologizing to me!"

He stood up and towered over me, so I stood on the couch and looked down at him. He scowled and moved to knock me down, but was interrupted another guy head-butting him out of the way. The new arrival stood up and I was faced with a younger looking Romano scowling down at the other guy.

"Stop fighting the damn ragazza and help us!" he yelled, pointing towards the hallway. I looked down there and could hear loud crying.

"What the hell do you need from me?!" he yells back, pulling himself up and crossing his arms.

"They aren't waking up you idiot!"

* * *

 **I feel like this was a fast chapter. Was it? Well, things get sad again in the next chapter. I still need to know what units you want! Or else it's up to me and who knows what you'll get then. Thanks for reading, comment, and look forward to the next chapter.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimers are repetitive and I think we all know that I don't own Hetalia, because if I did writing fanfiction would not be my first priority! That disclaimer is really long, but whatever. Anyway, there is a semi-important question/ general discussion thing at the bottom. Thanks for reading and enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

The redhead, who I now recognized as Allen from the photos, jumped up and ran down the hallway Romano came from. "Um, could you tell me what's going on?" I ask him quietly, not wanting to anger him in any way. His head jerks up and he glares at me, saying nothing as he turns around and walks back down the hallway. My curiosity gets the better of me and I scramble off the couch to follow him.

I followed him through the doorway and came across Oliver fretting over two beds. Romano is standing next to him and repeatedly punching a wall. Allen isn't in here, so I assume he went to another room. Oliver looks up from his fretting and notices me, his eyes lighting up with hope. "Poppet, come here, please read this for us," he requests, pulling me towards one of the beds and passing me a piece of paper.

I look down at the bed and see the younger Germany from the pictures sleeping soundly. My eyes shift to the note and the name at the top reads Al. "Italy is in trouble," I say loudly, reading off the paper. Oliver and Romano stare down at the boy, but nothing happens and the slouch again. I bite my lip and try again, but get the same reaction. Romano hands me another piece of paper and places me in front of the other boy. This time I'm looking down at Italy, or a younger version of him, with a smile on his face as he sleeps. "PASTA!" I shout, doing as the note instructs.

Nothing happens and I try two more times, willing Italy to open his eyes or do something. "Just give up ragazza, they won't wake up," Romano whispers. He growls and punches the wall next to Italy's bed, making me jump slightly.

"I'm sorry, really I am," I say, feeling like I was going to cry too. "Are there any more you want me to try?"

"I don't know poppet. You could try checking on Allen, I believe he's in the room two doors down," Oliver suggests, placing a hand on Romano's shoulder to try and calm him down. I nod and walk out of the room, moving two doors down to find Allen in a room made for working out. He was standing next to another person with snow white hair and ruby eyes.

"Did you want me to try waking him up?" I ask, interrupting the conversation they were having. They look over at me, startled by my sudden appearance, but both shake their head. I peer over at the bed and see Germany sleeping stiffly. In my head I count that three of them haven't woken up so far. "Isn't there another Romano?" I ask, going off the pictures I had seen. Allen and Prussia's eyes widen before they run past me and into yet another room.

I follow them into the room, but they're already shouting the words on the paper and shaking and older looking Romano. Prussia even tries to yank on his curl, but nothing is working. Eventually they give up and walk out of the room, leaving me alone with older Romano. I give him one last glance before also leaving the room. After wandering for a moment, I find that everyone awake have moved to the living room. "Poppet, would you do us a favor? Call the number on this pamphlet," Oliver says, holding out a pamphlet that said Gilbert Beilschmidt at the top.

"Yeah, sure Oliver," I reply, taking the little book from him and pulling out my cellphone. I start dialing the numbers and hold the phone out to see the hologram image of the receiver. As I wait, I look at the people still here. They all seem sad while they watch me make the call.

Finally someone picks up and I come face to face with a woman that has black hair and green eyes. "Flying Mint Bunny Incorporated, how may I help you?" she asks, looking at me while typing on a computer.

"I'm not really sure what's going on, but some of the people here won't wake up. We even said some stuff that was supposed to wake them up, but it didn't work," I try to explain, floundering slightly for the right words to say.

"It sounds like you're units won't wake up. We can send over one of our technicians to take a look at them. Could you give us their names?" she requests, looking down at her keyboard as she waits for the information.

Allen moves next to me and starts listing off the human names of the people still sleeping. "The units are Feliciano, Albert, Ludwig, and Romano," he says, staring at the woman as she types everything down. She nods prints off a sheet of paper before turning back to the screen.

"We can get a technician out there today or tomorrow. He'll do his best, but I am required to inform you of the most likely outcome. They will most likely have to be reset to factory mode, which includes losing all memories after initial startup. Thank you for calling us and we hope that your units feel better," she says before hastily hanging up.

I slowly close my phone and put it back into my pocket, staring down at the ground. I didn't even know these units, but I felt like I did because of my grandmother's stories. Still, there was nothing I could do to comfort any of the men in the room. We just stood in silence, allowing the despair to settle over us as we waited for the technician. Hopefully he would be able to help.

* * *

 **I feel like some of those were a little predictable...we'll just keep going with it. This chapter is why you should tell me what units you want to have show up next! Anyway, onto that question/discussion thing I had. My friend recently told me (note: forced) to get a Tumblr. So now I have this and I'm just wondering why I am doing this. It's all a little confusing, but then my friend suggested something really awesome. She suggested I create an ask blog for my OC (which is Israel for those that may not know) and I thought it was a pretty good idea. I'd actually really appreciate y'all's opinions on the matter, as they would be helpful. Thanks for reading, comments your thoughts on the chapter and the "question", and look forward to the next chapter!**


	6. Chapter 6

**I still don't own Hetalia, so we all know that the disclaimer should be here and I think that we should just move on. Sorry about not posting yesterday, but I got caught up in a very intense game of Cards Against Humanity and I couldn't escape. Anyway, there is important stuff at the bottom (including my Tumblr), so be sure to read that! Thanks for reading and enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

An awkward silence had fallen over us, crushing the six of us under its weight. It was only growing stronger and I started fidgeting in my seat. "Who the hell is she anyway?" Romano asks, pointing at me angrily.

"That is (Y/N), she lives here now. And please put money in the jar," Oliver says, smiling at me reassuringly and practically shoving a jar in Romano's face. "Don't worry about him poppet, he just needs time to warm up to you." I nod slightly, moving my gaze to my lap. This was all really stressful. In the span of three days I had attended my grandmother's funeral, been shipped to America, found out about units, and then be left to deal with this whole mess.

"Not that I'm complaining, but why is she here instead of Sarah?" Allen asks, glancing over at me. I sigh and stand up, moving to walk out of the room. I really didn't want to hear, or say, those words any more than I already had.

"I do believe that's up to (Y/N) to tell us," Oliver says, his tone full of warning to the others. I'm grateful, I really am, that he's already looking out for me. I mean, I've known the guy less than two hours and he hasn't tried to poison me yet, which is a plus.

"Then the frau should at least tell the awesome me. I want to know what happened to Sarah, it's not like her to be so unawesome," Prussia says, grabbing my arm lightly before I can walk away.

I rip my arm away and turn around to face all of them. "I'm only saying this once, so listen carefully. Sarah is my grandmother and she died. She is dead and left this house, and the stuff inside it, to me," I tell them. The room is silent; no one speaks or even moves because of the shock.

"Who wants lunch?" Oliver asks, breaking the silence in the room. He stands up and walks into the kitchen, Matthew following behind him.

"I'm going to my room if any of you need me," I say, turning around and walking back to the room I slept in. I shut the door and lean against it, sliding down to the ground. This was all too much, how had grandmother expected me to be able to deal with all of this? I could barely handle my own life and now I was supposed to keep track of Hetalia characters? I sighed and banged my head against the door, trying to come up with some sort of solution. Maybe Auntie would know, she used to live with them after all.

I pulled out my phone and called her number, placing the phone on the floor so I would be level with the hologram. "Hello dearie, is something the matter?" she asks when she picks up.

"Why did grandmother send me here? I've only been here for two days and already things are going wrong!" I exclaimed, tears threatening to spill over. "I wish grandmother was here."

Auntie's face softened even more and she put down her book, one of the paper ones that she insisted on reading instead of e-books. "Oh, baby, she was confident that you could handle it. Sarah also knew you would be happier there instead of here. Now, why don't you tell me what happened."

So I told Auntie about what had happened with the other units. I told her how Romano had seemed less than willing to like me and how everything was just awkward in general. I couldn't help but notice her face fall at my news, but she tried to stay strong for me and I was thankful for that. "I just don't know what to do Auntie," I finished, hugging my knees to my chest. She thought for a moment before her face lit up in the way it does when she gets an idea.

"Why don't you let me talk to everyone? I'm sure I can help out with them," she suggested. I nodded and grabbed the phone before I stood up and opened my door. I walked into the hallway and back towards the living room to find it empty. "Honey, they're probably in the kitchen," she says. I nod and walk towards the kitchen door, pushing it open to find everyone eating sandwiches at a table.

"(Y/N), you came out of your room. Are you feeling better now?" Matthew asks. I nod and walk towards the table, setting the phone down in the center so they can see Auntie on the hologram.

"Who's the old lady?" Prussia asks, staring at the hologram of Auntie.

"Gilbert! This is Kiki, now apologize for being rude," Oliver scolded, sending Auntie an apologetic look.

"It's alright Ollie, it's not like I haven't heard it before. It's good to see you too Gilbert," Auntie says, turning her attention back to Gilbert. She notices Allen and Romano are in her sight as well. "Now, I've heard that you boys are giving my niece some trouble. Lovi, don't be so closed off to her, she lost Sarah too. Allen, if you flirt with her Oliver has permission to make you special cupcakes. And Gilbert, don't be unawesome," she tells them.

"Fine ragazza, but only because you said so. It's not like I'll actually like her," Lovi grumbled, crossing his arms and sitting back in the chair. Gilbert and Allen mumble in agreement as well, making Auntie smile happily at them.

"Good, now feed the poor child some lunch. I have to get over to the doctor, so I'll try to remember to call later. Bye boys. Bye sweetie," she says, waving at us before hanging up the call. I grab the phone off the table and stuff it into my pocket.

"Here, why don't you sit down while I make you a sandwich?" Oliver suggests, leading me over to his empty seat and pushing me down into it.

"Thanks Oliver," I say, looking around at the table. "So, why are you guys here instead in England?" Oliver tenses and everyone looks visibly uncomfortable. Before I can apologize for asking, the doorbell rings and I jump up from the table. "I'll get it," I announce, quickly walking towards the front door and escaping the awkward situation.

I opened the door before the bell could ring again. On the other side was a boy who looked my age. His blonde hair fell into his green eyes and he had a confident smile on his face. "How's it going? The name's Conrad, I'm Carlson's grandson."

* * *

 **Alright, this one feels shorter even though it actually wasn't, which is kind of weird. I'm just going to go with it. So, in regards to the discussion I mentioned in the last chapter, I have decided that I will be doing an Ask Israel blog. I'll actually make it once I've gotten to know Tumblr better, so it may be a little. For those of you that want it, the link to my Tumblr is:** **Do with that what you will. Thanks for reading, comment your thoughts, and look forward to the next chapter!**


	7. Chapter 7

**We already know the disclaimer, if you don't know the disclaimer then you just don't read these author notes and you should start! I am so sorry for not posting Thursday! I had been buried under a craptastically monumental amount of homework, I was working on it for about four hours and still wasn't done when I stopped! Anyway, here is the new chapter with a special something as the second half for fairytailasaurus! (You're not going to like the end of it, though! :P) Thanks for reading and enjoy!**

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I'm going to be completely honest right now; I considered slamming the door in this guy's face. I really did, but by some miracle of miracles I had enough self-restraint to not close the door and walk away. Something about him just rubbed me the wrong way, though it was most likely the way he held himself. "Hi, I'm (Y/N). Can I help you?" I ask, trying really hard to not sound the way I felt.

"Yeah, my granddad told me to check up on you. I'm just wishing he had told me you had such a hot accent. Tell me, do you like your tea hot or cold before it's thrown into the harbor?" he asks with a mock cockney accent, crossing his arms and leaning against the doorway. I drop the act and full on glare at him, not amused in any way by his joke.

"Could you wait here a moment?" I ask, holding up a finger and leaving the doorway. I walk back through the living room and towards the kitchen. I walk in to find that everyone is still there, all looking at me. "Are any of you familiar with Conrad?" I question, eyebrow twitching in annoyance.

"Is that little shit stain at the door?! Swear to god, he's worse than his damn grandfather," Allen replies. He stands up and grabs the baseball bat that had somehow appeared next to him at the table. "I'll pay the damn jar later Oliver," he growls before Oliver can say anything. I follow him back towards the door where Conrad is still leaning against the doorframe.

"Hiya Scones, nice to see you running back. You just couldn't resist all of this, could ya?" he asks, not looking up to see who was actually at the door.

"Oh yeah doll, just couldn't wait to see yer pretty face again," Allen says, tapping his shoulder lightly with the bat. Conrad glances up and his confident demeanor drains away as his face pales.

"H-hey, didn't know you were awake," he stutters, taking a few steps back. Allen grins sadistically and takes a step forward, swinging the bat down off his shoulder.

"Oh I'm awake alright, awake and real ready ta work out some cricks in my neck," he replies, cracking his neck and then his knuckles.

Conrad visibly gulps and starts quaking in fear. He turns to me and, noticing my grin, realizes I won't be of any help. "Well, I think I should get going. See you around Scones!" he shouts before running off towards the road.

"Thanks for that," I say quietly, returning to my previous demeanor now that the nuisance is gone.

"No problem doll, that guy's a creep anyway," he replies, ruffling my hair and grinning. I flash him a tentative smile before turning around and going back inside. Allen follows me and I close the door behind us, noticing a scar in the middle of the door. I finger it for a moment, wondering where it came from, before shrugging and walking back towards the kitchen where everyone else is.

 **QUITE A WHILE AGO (before Sarah left for college)**

Sarah waited by the front door, bouncing on the balls of her feet as she watched the clock count down the seconds. She looked down at her dress once more, checking over the ruffled, blue skirt and silk top of it. She bent over slightly, grinning at the white converse on her feet, before standing up straight once more.

"Sarah, what are you doing?" Ludwig asks, stopping what he was doing as he notices her waiting by the door.

"Carlson is supposed to be taking me to prom and I'm really excited," she replies, grinning happily. "How does the outfit look?" she asks, spinning slowly so he can see it from every angle.

"It looks very nice," he replies, blushing slightly. "Excuse me, I need to go do something in the kitchen," he says, walking away quickly while trying to hide the obvious blush on his face. Sarah waves as he goes through the rest of the hallway and starts bouncing again.

She was pretty excited for tonight, considering the circumstances. Carlson had wanted to keep their dating under the radar, just to avoid the awkwardness around other people if things didn't work out. So they had been going out, under the radar, for the past three months. Sarah had brought up the issue with him, about going public, and he had agreed that it was the right time. They had both agreed that prom would be the perfect time to officially announce their relationship.

The doorbell rang, pulling Sarah out of her thoughts. She waited a moment before pulling the door open and smiling at Carlson. "Ready to go?" he asked. Sarah nodded and walked out the door, closing it behind her. She had told Oliver where she was going, so he would tell everyone else. "Alright, to the car my Jew."

-Time Skip-

Sarah burst through the front door, slamming it behind her and trying very hard to not cry. Oliver, hearing the door slam, popped his head into the hallway and gave her a concerned look. "Poppet, what's wrong?" he asks, walking towards her.

"Tonight was a disaster," she replies with a cracking voice. She turns around and practically throws herself into Oliver's arms so she had a shoulder to cry on. He slowly began moving towards the living room, Sarah moving with him, as he hushed her and patted her back. As they entered the living room, where everyone else had been watching a movie, all heads turn towards them.

"Mama, why are you crying?" Feli asks, looking close to tears himself just because Sarah was crying. Sarah looked up and started muttering apologies to Oliver for the smeared makeup on his shoulder. Oliver starts shushing her again and wiping away her tears with his handkerchief.

"Who the hell do I need to beat up?" Lovino asks, standing up and gritting his teeth. Allen stands up as well, swinging his bat over his shoulder and frowning.

"Come on doll, who's gonna get the beating tonight?" he asks, looking ready for a fight.

"Guys, please no, I just want to forget tonight happened," she says, shaking her head. She pulls her converse off and throws them at the pile of shoes in the corner near the door.

"You can tell us anything, you know. I'm too awesome to judge," Gilbert said, not even bothering to hide the concern in his voice. A chorus of agreement rang through the living room and Sarah sighs.

"Fine, but I really just want to go to bed after this. So, when we got to Prom everyone was shocked, which we expected. Unfortunately they were also really judgmental of us and started telling Carlson how wrong we were together. I think he let it get to him and he broke up with me, in front of everyone. So, I ran home and here I am," she says, fresh tears falling down her face again.

"Poppet, is Carlson still at the prom?" Oliver asks, his eyes swirling dangerously. He had somehow acquired a knife and was holding it like he was ready to stab someone. Sarah didn't respond, which Oliver took as a yes, so he stalked towards the front door.

"Oliver! No, remember the rules!" Sarah exclaimed, running after him and holding him away from the door. He growled and plunged the knife into the middle of the door before stalking off towards his room, leaving everyone to stare at his retreating form.

This was the first time Sarah considered leaving the country for college.

* * *

 **So, fairytailasaurus, how's it feel knowing your ship was canon for a few months? For those of you wondering, there will be more chapters showing Sarah and the units before she had to turn them off. There was a reason for that, she didn't just do it because she wanted to. In fact, that was the last thing she wanted! Anyway, that's for later chapters, so you'll just have to wait! Thanks for reading, comment your thoughts, and look forward to the next chapter!**


	8. Chapter 8

**Are disclaimers even necessary anymore? Would anyone notice if I just stopped adding them?! I might try that in the next chapter even though only a few people actually read this... Anyway, let's move along. Chapters may be a little slow for the next week or so because school seems to think that I don't need sleep or have awesomely loyal readers to write for. Thanks for understanding and reading and enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

I had just sat back down at the table, there was even a sandwich in front of me too, when the doorbell rang again. I groaned and pulled myself back up, ignoring the protests of the others as I did so. Once I reached the door I took a deep breath and opened it, half expecting Conrad to be on the other side this time too. Thankfully, someone else was on the other side instead. It was a man wearing khaki shorts, a tan polo, and white tennis shoes. The logo on his shirt said FMB Delivery Services and he had a tool belt pulled through the loops in his khakis, which I assumed to mean this was the repair guy.

"Hi, are you here to look at the units?" I ask. I felt a little stupid asking, but I wanted to be absolutely sure.

"Yes, I am, the name's Brad. If it's not too much trouble, may I come in and see the units?" he asks. I nod and step away from the door, allowing Brad to enter the house. "Thank you ma'am. Would you be kind enough to show me to the first room?"

"Yeah, it's this way," I say, leading him through the living room. We go past the kitchen, where the others notice me leading the repair guy, and into the first room. "These two are the first," I tell him, gesturing to Italy and the other boy on the bed. Brad walks towards the other boy first and kneels down to inspect him.

"This looks like a Holy Roman Empire unit, they're pretty rare," Brad says, lifting the boy so he can sit up. Once he is in a sitting position, Brad pulls out a scanner and aims the light at the back of the boy's neck. A little compartment opens, revealing various wires and a control panel. "These wires look very old, how long has he been asleep?"

"About fifty years," a voice says from behind me. I look over and see Gilbert standing there, a sad look on his face. "We were all asleep for that long."

"No wonder, I thought it was just a few years, but fifty is so long," Brad replies. He furrows his eyebrows and shines a light into the compartment, possibly looking for something. He clicks the flashlight off and lays the boy down. Brad then moves on to Italy and repeats the process. He does this for the other two units as well, with Gilbert and I watching as he does so. "Do you mind gathering the ones that are awake?" Brad asks when he is done.

"Yeah, I'll lead you to the living room and then gather the others," I say. He nods and follows me out to the living room. I leave him there and go back to the kitchen with Gilbert. Everyone is still sitting at the table, but a sullen silence has fallen over the group. "The repair man wants to speak with us," I tell everyone. They get up and walk past me into the living room, leaving me to take up the rear of the group.

Brad waits for us to sit on the couches before he begins. "It appears that the wiring in them is just very old. This problem is easily fixed, but results in each of them losing their memory. What would happen then is that we would send them out to new owners. They would have another chance at happiness and would have no recollection of anything that happened here," he explains.

"I think we should do it, they should get another chance," Matthew says.

"But they're our damn family!" Lovino argues.

"I agree with Mattie, the poor dearies have the chance to forget everything. It's more than we'll get," Oliver replies, sounding sadder compared to his usually happy demeanor.

"My awesome brothers deserve a second chance. It would be so unawesome of us to deny them that," Gilbert adds, leaning forward slightly in his seat.

"They'll be forgetting all about Sarah and Kiki though. That ain't very nice," Allen says, agreeing with Lovino.

"They won't have their memories though, so they won't even know that they should be missing someone," Matthew says.

"You bastards just don't get it! They. Are. Famiglia! We don't give up on famiglia!" Lovino yells, his face turning red from anger and frustration. His words are the catalyst for a full blown screaming match. I wince as the volume escalates and the words turn into an indecipherable mess. I look towards Brad, silently asking him to do something about the yelling going on.

He merely shrugs his shoulders and gives me an apologetic look back. I stand up, walk over to the kitchen door, open it, and then slam it shut as hard as I possibly can. The arguing stops instantly and they all look at me. "I know I probably don't have any say in this, but I think you should consider what's best for them. Yes, they're your family, but they were also my grandmother's family. You were all devastated when you found out she passed, so you could be sparing them from that pain. I just think that it may be better for them," I explain, trying to make them understand that it may be the better option.

"We can also offer to give you updates on how they're doing," Brad offers, finally piping up since this whole argument started. Lovino and Allen looked at each other, seeming to speak silently, before they both nodded.

"Fine, fix them and give them to someone else," Lovino said bitterly. He stands up from his seat beside Allen and angrily walks to another room in the house. I sigh and look down at the floor, feeling bad for even coming to this house. If I hadn't come, none of this would have happened and I would be home right now with Auntie.

Brad starts speaking, but I tune him out and just pretend I'm listening to his words. He eventually stops and walks back down the hall of rooms, making four trips between the rooms and his van so he can get all the units. "Ma'am, I was wondering if I could speak with you in private," he says quietly when he's done.

I nod and follow him outside, closing the door slightly behind me. "What was it you wanted to speak with me about?" I ask him.

"The agency felt bad about your units, so they're going to be sending you new ones. They won't be the same as your previous units though. I just thought you would appreciate knowing ahead of time. The first one is coming in two days," he says quickly and quietly. When he finishes Brad turns and walks to his van, leaving me standing alone on the door step.

I was getting new units in two days, but I could barely interact with the ones I had now. What was I going to do?!

* * *

 **Just in case you're wondering, famiglia means family. New units coming soon! Not the next chapter, but definitely the one after that. It's not too late to tell me what unit you want either, just let me know in them comments! Thanks for reading, comment your thoughts and unit choice, and look forward to the next chapter!**


	9. Chapter 9

**I am alive! Look, that was optimism! Anyway, this chapter is mostly about the reader in that it focuses more on the questions you may have. That doesn't necessarily mean you get answers. If anything, you end up with more questions by the end of this chapter! Thanks for reading and enjoy the chapter.**

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Nobody really talked after Brad left with the units. They just went to their rooms and stayed there, not coming out for the rest of the day. I can't really say anything about them, though, considering I did the same thing. I had spent the rest of the day reading my grandmother's old books and sleeping. I was determined, however, to do something today.

Around nine in the morning, I checked the house to see if anyone was awake. Once I had confirmed that they were still asleep, I grabbed my wallet and slipped out the front door. No alarms went off to signal my leaving, which made me grateful the house seemed to be stuck fifty years in the past.

I decided to just wander around the neighborhood and get myself acquainted with it. The walk also gave me time to think about what the units had said yesterday. They kept insisting that the ones still asleep could get a second chance, but why would they need one? What happened that was so horrible? Grandmother had always told me such wonderful stories about her time here, but now I wanted to know why she had brought them back to this mansion. I wanted to know why she had turned them off, forced them to sleep, for fifty years.

My thinking had led to me zoning out so, when I finally started paying attention to my surroundings again, I found myself in a park. I instantly went to the swings and sat myself down. The familiar feeling of moving back and forth calmed me down and I started listing my questions in my head.

I wanted to know what happened. I wanted to know why it happened. I wanted to know what they meant by giving second chances. I wanted to know why my grandmother didn't seem to trust me enough to tell me the truth. I wanted to know everything that has to do with that house and the people inside it.

In this moment, I realized how messed up everything really was. Here I was, someone who could barely take care of themselves unless it involved ramen for every meal, thrown into an impossibly real situation. There were five, soon to be more, people that depended on me for something and I didn't know what it was. Not only that but apparently I'm supposed to be walking into this house with total knowledge of what went down there and no one will even give me hints about it! In no reality is this deal fair. In no reality is this situation normal.

Though, if I'm being honest with myself, this is something my grandmother would do. She had a habit of dropping me into situations she thought I could handle. She was usually right too, but that didn't mean I wasn't angry with her for doing it in the first place! I sighed and placed my feet down on the ground, stopping the swing from continuing its back and forth motions. I checked my phone and realized it had been about an hour since I left the house.

I don't want to go back, but I also don't want to stay on these swings or in this playground. I stand up from the swings and continue walking, winding up in this town's version of a city center. It was actually surprising how close everything is to the house. There are a lot of coffee shops, a grocery store, a bookstore, and a few random stores packed onto the street next to each other.

The bookstore is what draws me though the coffee shop closest to me was pretty inviting. A small bell jingles as I open the door, scaring me since I was more accustomed to the electronic ones. A woman at the cash register looks up as I walk in, waving and smiling cheerfully at me. I give an awkward smile and wave back, moving to the rear of the store where I won't be seen.

Once I find a quiet corner in the back, I sit down on the floor and lean my head against the bookcase behind me. The quiet and stillness of the store have a calming effect on me, allowing me to destress after the crazy events of the past few days. I look around at the books and realize I'm in the classics section, not the modern ones either. I pull down a book next to me and read the title, Frankenstein. My grandmother used to tell me all about this book, how she always felt bad for the monster. I think she related to the monster in more ways than she let on, but that was just another thing I never got a clear answer on.

The book stays with me as I walk up to the register, determined to get the book and maybe some answers. "I'd like this book please," I say quietly, placing the hardcover book on the counter. It was weird, to say the least, to find a store full of material books, especially ones with hard covers.

"Of course. Was there anything else you needed help with?" the woman asks. Her curly, brown hair bounces as she ducks beneath the counter to pull out a plastic bag for me.

"I was wondering if you could tell me about the mansion a few miles away from here. I mean, the one that hasn't been inhabited for about fifty years," I say, trying my best to sound like an interested tourist.

The woman's brown eyes widen slightly before going back to their normal size, a reaction I would have missed if I had blinked. "That's not for me to say. It's not for you to be asking around about either. Too much has happened in that place to be dredging up out of the ground again," she answers. She shoves my book in the bag and walks out from behind the counter. She literally shoves the bag in my hands and pushes me out of the store, shutting the door immediately behind me.

"Great job (Y/N), real good at subtlety aren't you?" I mutter to myself, attracting the attention of other people. I ignore them and start walking back to the mansion, getting lost a few times on the way there. The mansion finally comes into view and I sigh in relief.

As it turned out, nobody had woken up during my whole outing. I walked back to me room and shut the door behind me, being as quiet as possible. The day had been rather unproductive. All I had gained from it was an old book and more questions than I started with.

* * *

 **I'm hoping a few of you recognized some of these locations, but it's ok if you didn't. Also, if you haven't already, go see Deadpool! IT'S AMAZING! Gosh, ok, I'm done now, maybe. Thanks for reading, comment your thoughts, and look forward to the next chapter.**


	10. Chapter 10

**I can't remember if I said this chapter would have the new unit or not. It doesn't, so my bad if I did promise that. Anyway, this is a fun chapter for you guys, so enjoy the chapter and thanks for reading!**

* * *

 _Oliver panted as he scrubbed his clothes vigorously, watching the water run pink in the bath tub. He was panicking, to say the least, as he placed the shirt on the toilet seat. He really wasn't sure what had happened. One moment he was making lunch and the next he was back in the kitchen, but covered in blood and holding a knife. Oliver shuddered, endlessly scolding himself for doing something he couldn't even remember. He pulled the plug of the bathtub and watched the pink water swirl down the drain. Oliver gathered the clothes and walked quickly towards the dryer, hoping no one ever found out about what he thinks he's done._

* * *

My eyes flew open and I noticed my heavy breathing. I hadn't been dreaming, I know that, but something had scared me awake. A knock on my door makes me jump and realize why I had woken up in the first place. I throw the blankets off and walk to the door, opening it and finding Matthew on the other side. "Oliver says you should eat something. He wants you to come to the kitchen," he says quietly.

I look down at myself and decide that frog PJs are perfectly acceptable clothes for eating. I step into the hallway and close the door behind me, flashing Matthew a quick smile before walking down the hall. "So, how long were you with my grandmother?" I ask.

"I was the first unit. I'm also the only one who ever met Sarah's mother," he replies, his tone a little darker at the mention of Grandmother's mother.

"Really? What was she like, her mother?" I ask, becoming curious about my great grandmother. I haven't heard much about her from anyone.

"She was an awful woman," Matthew said simply. I wait, expecting him to say more, but realize that's all he's going to say on the subject. A silence settles over us as we reach the kitchen door. I can hear shouting from inside and get the feeling that I'll want to go back to my room. "We should go in, maybe it just sounds worse than it is," Matthew says hesitantly.

"I guess I'll go first," I tell him, stepping closer to the door. I open it and immediately get hit in the face with something. It doesn't hurt, but the impact was a huge shock to my system. I wipe some substance away from my face and look at my hands, realizing it was icing. After tasting the icing, which was delicious, I look up at the scene before me. Icing and some kind of batter was splattered everywhere, including the four people in the kitchen. Lovino was fuming by the fridge, obviously annoyed with the batter in his hair. Gilbert was standing next to him, laughing loudly as he scooped out more batter from the bowl in his arms. Oliver and Allen were on the other side of the room, each holding an icing bag with surprisingly good reach.

I take it all in calmly and shake my head, licking at the icing still on my lips. "Eat my batter losers!" Gilbert yells, throwing his handful of batter across the room. It, somehow, is able to cross the room and hit both Allen and Oliver in the face. Allen growls and squirts his icing bag, hitting Lovino square in the chest, before also aiming it at Oliver. Oliver yelps and squeezes his bag accidentally, sending icing onto the ceiling of the kitchen.

Matthew and I watch similar chaos continue to unfold before us, completely baffled by it all. I look around again and notice a basket of tomatoes on the table in front of us. "Hey, want to get in on the action?" I ask Matthew, elbowing him lightly to get his attention. He gives me a confused look until I point to the basket, which makes him break out into a grin.

"Wait here," he says, crouching down and slowly making his way towards the basket. The icing on the ceiling drips onto his back, making him flinch slightly. Matthew manages to grab the basket and make it back to me without being noticed. "Here we go," he whispers, handing me two tomatoes. He holds the basket in one hand and a tomato in the other.

I grin and, without waiting for any sort of cue from Matthew, throw my first tomato at Gilbert. It hits him on the side of the head, completely knocking him off guard and making him fall to the floor. Matthew and I start laughing as we throw the tomatoes at the other three, making all of them duck for cover and aim their icing and batter at us. We stand our ground and, pretty soon, the room is also covered in tomato.

I reach into the basket and grab the last tomato. Only Allen is left standing, as Lovino and Oliver gave up halfway through and Gilbert was covered in too many tomatoes to continue. "Yer goin' against an outlaw girlie. Ain't no chance of you winning this fight," he shouts, grinning like he's already won.

"That's a double negative! You just admitted I'm going to win," I shout back, throwing my last tomato with all my might. It hits him in the forehead, knocking him to the ground. Matthew and I grin at each other, happily victorious in our fight. We high five each other and bits of tomato fly off our hands as we do. I look down at my clothes and groan at the huge amounts of icing, batter, and tomato bits on them.

"Maybe we should all take a shower," Matthew suggests, gesturing to his clothes as well.

"I'm going to go shower and then I'll come help clean everything up," I promise. Matthew nods and I go off to my room for a much-needed shower.

* * *

 **Did you enjoy that food fight? I hope you did! The next chapter definitely has the new unit, I promise! I'm also very sure that you'll enjoy the new unit, he's pretty adorable. Thanks for reading, comment your thoughts, and look forward to the next chapter!**


	11. Chapter 11

**Ah yes, an update, how delightful. These little bits at the beginning are leading up to something and reader gets to find out what happened pretty soon. New unit introduced in this chapter! Enjoy it guys, because the next two chapters are bonding with this unit and it's so adorable! Ok, thanks for reading and enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

 _Al watched as Oliver left the bathroom, just as watched when Oliver went in. He had suspicions about why Oliver had gone in there, but he wasn't completely sure. Al had seen the bruises too, Al had been angry too, but Al wasn't the one who had acted on it. No, he had protected Feli from finding out the truth and he had done it well. Feli had no idea and he wouldn't ever have any idea if Al had anything to say. Al sighed and turned around, determined to keep this secret that Oliver didn't know he knew._

* * *

My hair was still damp as I walked out of my room, dressed in an old shirt and jeans. I went back to the kitchen and found it to be spotless, all evidence of our food war completely gone. It looked like even a police search wouldn't turn up a thing. I went to the living room and found the five of them standing in a small circle, cleaned up and clothes changed. "I said I was going to help you clean the kitchen," I say, gaining their attention.

Lovino turned around and stepped out of the circle, revealing a wooden box in the middle of them. "You want to explain why the hell this is here?" he growls, holding up a pamphlet and gesturing towards the box.

"It's a large box?" I try, not really sure myself what was going on. It looked to be around knee height and had a small handle on the front. "What is it supposed to be?"

"It's another unit. It was just dropped off too," Allen says, looking at the box. It clicks and I remember Brad saying the company would be delivering more units by today.

"The company felt bad about the others, so they decided to send us more units. This must be the first one," I explain, gesturing towards the crate in the room. Lovino scowls and shoves the pamphlet into my hands before walking away. I look at the others and see the pained expressions on their faces. "You can go too, if you want."

Allen and Gilbert give me a nod and walk out of the room. "I'm sorry poppet, I just can't right now," Oliver says. He gives me a supportive smile and walks out of the room. Matthew follows him, giving my shoulder a light pat as he goes. I watch them go, staring at the empty doorway for a moment before turning to the crate again.

I walk over to it and realize that it is actually a little shorter than my knee, which means the person inside must be pretty small. My eyes travel to the pamphlet and I notice the name on the front, Ivan Braginsky on it. I flip through the first few pages and come to a page about waking up the unit inside.

 _Thank you for purchasing the Chibi Ivan Braginsky unit. The following list is some advised ways to wake up your new unit in a safe and friendly manner. Please remember that your new unit is still Ivan Braginsky, so violence is possible, but not likely._

 _Open the crate and ask the unit to be your friend. This will cause the unit to wake up and attach itself to the nearest person._

 _Open the box and take his scarf away. This will cause the unit to wake up angrily._

 _Open the box and say something in Russian. This will cause the unit to speak in only Russian._

I decided to go with the first option, seeing as it was the easiest way to wake up the small unit. I opened the door using the handle and crouched down. Inside was a boy who looked no older than five. He had silver hair, a prominent nose, there was a long white scarf around his neck, and he was wearing a very heavy coat. He looked lonely, though it may have been because of the slightly downturned mouth on his sleeping face.

"Can I be your friend?" I ask quietly, waiting for a second before anything actually happens. The unit's eyes flicker open, revealing blue eyes that almost look purple or violet. Ivan looks at me and, for a moment, we stare at each other.

Suddenly, he launches himself at me and wraps his arms around me, knocking me over in the process. "Mama!" he shouts happily, nuzzling his head into my neck and making me giggle because of the ticklish area. I use one hand to balance myself as the other wraps around Ivan. "You will be my friend, right?" he asks, a thick Russian accent prevalent in his voice.

"Of course I will," I reply, managing to stand up without dropping Ivan. He looks up at me with wide eyes.

"You will be my mother too, right?" he asks again, looking even more hopeful than before. I look into his eyes and smile softly.

"If that's what you want, then I can be," I tell him, not really sure what I'm getting myself into right now. Ivan grins and hugs me again, burying his face into my neck even more when his stomach growls loudly. "Would you like me to make you some oatmeal?" I ask, figuring he would want something warm in his stomach.

"Yes please Mama," he says happily. I nod and try to pull him off of me so I can make it, but he holds on tightly. "No, I stay with Mama," he mutters. His scarf somehow wraps itself around me, further insuring that he won't be moved. I sigh and pat his head, moving to the kitchen as I glance back at the box he came in.

Nobody is in the kitchen, which I'm pretty thankful for, when I walk in. I remove my hands from Ivan and realize the scarf will hold him in place while I make the food. I spend about twenty minutes making it from scratch and scooping it from the pot and into a bowl. "Ok, turn around so you can eat the oatmeal," I tell him, sitting down at a table with the bowl in front if us.

Ivan turns and starts to happily eat the oatmeal, never leaving my lap. I smile and brush some hair out of his face, thinking that maybe it won't be too bad with Ivan around. Hopefully.

* * *

 **Just, chibi Russia is adorable and makes me cry every time I see his episodes! Gosh, this is also for the reviewer who requested Russia. I made him chibi, which I hope you don't mind too much. Thanks for reading, comment your thoughts, and look forward to the next chapter!**


	12. Chapter 12

**Ok, just warning you, the next few chapters are products of me going on a cute binge! Ivan is just so adorable! Thanks for reading and enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

 _Feli and Lovi found out anyway, despite Al doing his best to keep it from him. They had been talking and Al had let it slip, consequently letting Lovi know too. Of course, the both of them started freaking out in their own ways. Lovi started cursing and Feli started crying his eyes out. Al did his best to calm them both down and was able to get them to stop after a few minutes. He made both of them promise to not tell anyone, but he couldn't watch them 24/7 either. Al just hoped that they could keep the secret._

* * *

I had the feeling that everyone was avoiding me; all because a company had sent us more units that I hadn't asked for. Ivan, he was worth it, but I don't know if I want any of the other ones. They won't be like Ivan; at least, he won't leave me alone. In fact, I think he is exactly what I needed. Ivan listens and just hugs me when I look sad though he seems to always be hugging me regardless.

"Ivan, do you want to go out for a walk or something?" I ask him, looking down to see his silver hair. He looks up and smiles at me.

"Yes, it would be very fun Mama," he replies. Ivan jumps to the ground, his scarf wrapping itself around my wrist instead of my stomach, and starts to lead me towards the door. "Is there a park around here?" he asks, stopping at the door while I get my shoes on.

"Yeah, there's one nearby. We can go to it," I reply, walking out the door with Ivan. He grabs my hand that is still wrapped in his scarf. I start swinging my arm with his, smiling when he giggles at the motion. "So, Ivan, how come you think I'm your mother?" I ask.

He looks up, a smile still on his face from laughing, and squeezes my hand. "Because you woke me up and your eyes are nice," he replies simply. "You were not mean to me and did not run away. You feed me and hold me too. Those are all things a Mama would do for their child, yes?"

I smile and stoop down to pick up Ivan, resting him on my hip as the scarf readjusts to wrap around my waist. "That is all very true. Now, can you tell me how the scarf works?" I ask, looking down at the material wrapped around me.

"It holds onto what I love so I don't lose it," he explains, hugging me with arms that barely cover half my stomach. See, this is why Ivan is good for me. He loves me and is so sweet. Honestly, I was beginning to wonder if anything good would come out of my gift from grandmother, but now I realize that I did.

"Here we are Ivan," I say, setting him down just inside the entrance to the park. I notice a few other kids in the park; their mothers sitting on the benches watching them. "You go play with the kids and I'll be right over there with the mothers," I tell him, giving him a gentle push towards the other kids. His scarf unwraps from me and he starts walking towards the kids as I walk towards the mothers. I sit on a bench close to them, close enough to hear what they're saying, but still at my own bench.

"Excuse me, but which child is yours?" a woman asks. I look over to see a woman in her thirties. She has blonde hair that's obviously been dyed, brown eyes that seem cold, and an overly exaggerated hourglass figure. I scoot a little closer, just so I won't be forced to talk to the dip in her shirt anymore, and smile a little.

"The little boy with silver hair," I reply quietly, pointing to Ivan as he slowly walks up to a group of girls and boys. The woman smiles at me, revealing overly whitened teeth. I can't help but think that this must be the very definition of a trophy wife.

"Oh, he's so cute. Don't you think you're a little young to have a child, though?" she asks again, revealing her true intentions already. I know what she wants, it's obvious really, and I know that she'll pry until she gets all the gossip she needs to keep her friends entertained.

I give her a smile before scooting a little closer, giving the full impression that I'll divulge my life story. "With all due respect ma'am, I don't even know you. I see no reason to tell you anything about myself," I reply, smiling sweetly at her.

"Then I should introduce myself. The name's Carla, I live in the house across from the park. This is Megan and this is Lauren, they're both my neighbors," she says, pointing to the two women beside her. They both look like exact copies of Carla, except Megan has brown hair and Lauren has black hair. They smile and wave at me while I just nod back.

"It's nice to meet all of you. My name's (Y/N), I just moved into that house a few blocks over. You know, the one that's been vacant for fifty years," I respond. My words make all three widen their eyes and scoot in closer, obviously wanting to hear more from me.

"How did you come to live there? I mean, your accent is obviously British" Lauren says, a Hispanic accent as evident as Ivan's Russian one. I clear my throat and watch as Ivan sits with the other kids, seeming to enjoy himself there.

"I inherited it from my Grandmother," I say simply, not wanting to have a tell-all session.

"Isn't she the one that lived with all those men? No wonder her granddaughter has a child at this age," Megan says, cackling with the other two witches. I clear my throat and stand up, gaining Ivan's attention from the sandbox.

"Well, if you simply must know, Ivan is my child. He is not, however, my biological child. Now, if you would excuse me, my child, English accent, and I must be going," I say, turning my back on the three of them and walking towards Ivan. "How about we leave and get some hot chocolate in town, alright?" I ask him.

Ivan nods and stands up, grabbing my hand and walking out of the park. Once we've passed the gate his scarf wraps around my hand as well. "Mama, those other kids said I was weird and that my eyes were scary," he says quietly.

"Ivan, I want you to listen. We have this saying in England. Keep calm and carry on. It means to take everything in stride and pay no mind to what people say that may hurt you. The thing I've learned, however, is that words will hurt us even if we try to keep them from doing so. What I'm trying to say is that you could try to keep a tough exterior, but the words will hurt and that's why I'm here. So just come to me and we can deal with it together," I tell him, trying to make some sort of sense.

"It is ok Mama; I know what you are trying to say. I can also take out my rage with my scarf, but I want hot chocolate first," he tells me. I smile at his childish innocence and swing his arm again, his giggles filling the empty space as we walk into town.

* * *

 **Can you feel the adorable yet? If not, then just wait, it's coming in the next chapter! Thanks a bunch for reading, comment your thoughts, and look forward to the next chapter!**


	13. Chapter 13

**I am so sorry for not updating lately! I got really busy and went to an anime convention yesterday and things have been crazy! _IMPORTANT:_ I understand that you may be confused by the beginnings of the chapters. Not to worry, for everything will be cleared up in a few chapters. You'll get to see why Sarah had to take the units back and why they wanted to give the others a second chance. We'll also see where the new units ended up, but that's in a later chapter. Thanks for reading and enjoy the chapter.**

* * *

 _Allen and Lovino found out from Lovi, who had been cussing a storm about the issue when he thought he was alone in the house. The two of them had busted into his room and started demanding answers. Lovi told them and all three started swearing and shouting at each other to release some anger. They all knew why Oliver had done it, but they were still angry that he had. Word was travelling fast in the house, which meant it was only a matter of time before Sarah found out as well._

* * *

I set down one mug of hot chocolate in front of Ivan and the other in front of my seat across from him. I take the bag of cookies I was holding with my teeth and put it between us at the table. I take a seat and sigh, glad to be sitting after such a long wait in the line. I shift slightly in my chair and pull a straw out of my pocket, putting it in front of Ivan in case he needs it. "It's supposed to be really hot, so be careful," I warn him, smiling softly.

"It is not a problem, nothing is too hot for me," he replies, picking up the mug and taking a sip from it. When he puts the cup down there is a little whipped cream mustache on his upper lip. I chuckle, taking a napkin from the dispenser on the table and leaning over to wipe it away. "Thank you," he says quietly, blushing a little bit.

"You're welcome, though it was very cute," I tell him, smiling softly. I pick up my mug and take a tentative sip, flinching a little when the hot drink burns my tongue. Ivan giggles when I put the mug down, letting me know that I have a mustache too. I grin and wipe it away with a different napkin, finding it amusing.

"What kind of cookies did you get?" Ivan asks excitedly. He regards the bag of cookies with hopeful eyes. I pick it up and open the bag, passing him one of the chocolate chip cookies while I eat a snickerdoodle one. "Do you think it would taste good with whipped cream?" he asks, looking up at me.

"Only one way to find out, isn't there?" I ask in reply. I dip mine in the whipped cream and take a bite of it, nodding in approval. "I'd say it tastes very good," I tell him. Ivan smiles widely and scoops half of his whipped cream onto the one cookie. He shoves the whole thing into his mouth, making delighted noises as he chews.

"Mama, are there other people at home?" he asks around the mouthful of cookie.

"First, you shouldn't speak with your mouth full, it's considered rude," I tell him. He nods and swallows the food in his mouth, muttering an apology afterwards. I hand him another cookie, which he gladly takes from my hand. "Second, there are a few other people at the house. We're all just going through a rough spot at the moment."

"What do you mean?" he asks me, placing the cookie down so he can take a sip from his drink.

"Well, I don't think they like me right now. See, someone we all loved died a few days ago. Not only that, but there used to be more people at the house. Those guys didn't wake up from their sleep, which only made the others even sadder. They got angry when you showed up, because it was too soon for them to have another family member," I explain, trying to make the story lighter than it really is. I sigh and drink half my mug in one breath, placing it back down on the table and licking away the whipped cream it left.

"They are not nice for making you sad. I will punish them when we get home," Ivan says, glaring at his hot chocolate. His small hands clench into fists and he looks like he really just wants to hit something.

"No, Ivan, it's fine. I'm not angry at them, because they have every reason to be sad and mad with me right now. I just need to give them time and they'll come around, I'm sure," I tell him. Ivan nods, but continues to glare at the mug in front of him. "Ivan, how about this? If I ever get too sad or they start to get to me too bad, then I'll come to you and we can comfort each other."

"Yes, we will do that. Can I still punish them?" Ivan asks innocently. He's looking up at me and smiling wide enough that his eyes are nearly closed. In all honesty, he looks adorable right now.

"Only if I give you permission, but you aren't allowed to otherwise," I reply, giving him a very serious look. His happy nod makes me grin back. I drink down the rest of the hot chocolate and set the mug aside. "Is there anything you want to do now?" I ask him.

Ivan thinks for a moment and takes the last bite of the cookie in his hand. "Can we go home now? I am tired," he says, almost reassuring the statement with a small yawn. I smile and nod, standing up from the table and closing the cookie bag so we can bring the rest of them with us.

"Here, let me carry you if you're so tired," I say, holding my arms out for Ivan. He stands up in the chair and I pick him up, his scarf immediately wrapping around me again. He rests his head on my shoulder with his arms around my neck. I smile and walk out of the coffee shop, heading back for the house.

* * *

 **Ok, that was probably the last Ivan focused chapter for a bit. The next few are going to be more centered on the rest of the units coming to terms with everything that has happened and learning to get used to the changes. Sorry again for the delay! Thanks for reading, comment your thoughts and any unit you want to have show up, and look forward to the next chapter!**


	14. Chapter 14

**Alright, a new chapter for y'all! This ended up taking a little longer to write because the ideas just wouldn't flow like they usually do. Either way, I think this one provides good development for Sarah's past and the reader. Thanks for reading and enjoy the chapter.**

* * *

 _Gilbert had found out from Allen, which meant Ludwig found out from Gilbert. They both started wondering why Oliver would do something like that. Everyone knew the rules and swore to never break them, but Oliver had anyway. Ludwig wanted to tell Sarah right away, but Gilbert wanted to confront Oliver about it first. The two argued for a while about the matter, finally agreeing to divide and conquer. Oliver would have to come to terms with what he did and Sarah would too._

* * *

I quietly open the front door and step inside, noticing the house is still quiet. Ivan had fallen asleep on the way home, breathing softly on my neck and making it hard for me to not laugh from how it tickles. I close the door behind me and slip off my shoes before heading towards my room. There is a light on in the kitchen, but I decide to check it out after getting Ivan into a bed.

I slip into my room and close the door with my foot. Ivan stirs a little but doesn't wake up from his slumber. A sigh of relief escapes me as I sit on the bed gently and lay him down next to me. I try to get up again but am stopped by Ivan's scarf holding me tightly. After a few minutes of trying to unravel it, I realize it won't let go unless Ivan wants it to.

I figure there's nothing I can do about the situation, considering I don't want to wake up Ivan, so I lie down next to him. Sounds of the house settling around us and Ivan breathing lull me into sleeping as well, unconsciously pulling Ivan closer to me before falling fully asleep.

* * *

 _Ludwig walked up to Sarah hesitantly, wondering if he was actually doing the right thing. Sarah was on the phone, talking with someone about a boyfriend that had gone missing recently. "I've already spoken with Scotland Yard and they told me to not leave the city anytime soon!" she exclaimed into the phone. Ludwig waited to the side for her conversation to be done. "Oh, I have to get going now, but I'll call you later," she says._

 _Sarah puts the phone down and sighs tiredly, staring at the floor for a moment. "Sarah, can I talk to you?" Ludwig asks, speaking softly to avoid startling her. Sarah looks up and nods, motioning for him to continue. "It's about your missing boyfriend. Al saw Oliver cleaning his clothes in the bathroom a week or so ago. He says they were covered in blood and that Oliver was frantically scrubbing them," he tells her, including every detail he had been told by Gilbert._

 _Sarah doesn't say anything for a minute or two, shocked that Oliver would go against the rules. She takes a deep breath and nods. "I suppose I need to speak with Ollie then. Thanks for telling me Ludwig, I really appreciate it," she says, smiling softly at the German. Sarah walks off into the hallway leading to her room, leaving Ludwig alone by the phone. Ludwig knows he did the right thing, but he can't help but feel like he also did something horrible._

* * *

I woke up a few hours later to Ivan jumping around on the bed. "Mama, this is a very bouncy bed," he says happily. Ivan bounces once more and lands beside me, flushed and out of breath, in a sitting position. I smile lazily at him and sit up, rubbing my eyes and stretching a bit.

"I think there was someone in the kitchen when we got back. Do you want to go see if they are still there?" I ask him. Ivan nods and stands up on the bed again, wobbling a little as he does. I manage to get up as well, still a little tired from the nap. Ivan takes the opportunity to scramble onto my back and climb up onto my shoulders. "Comfortable up there?" I ask jokingly.

"Yes, it is very comfortable here," he replies seriously. His scarf wraps itself around my neck, making me feel like it's my scarf instead of Ivan's. I smile and open the door so I can step out into the hallway. Ivan does his best to stay balanced on my shoulders while I walk towards the kitchen, but I do have to steady him a few times. "Mama, when can I meet the other people here?"

I tilt my head a little to look up at him. "I think it just depends on them. They'll meet you when the time is right for them," I reply, pushing open the door of the kitchen. Gilbert looks up as we walk in, eying Ivan for a moment before nodding to me. "Ivan, this is Gilbert," I say, gesturing towards Gilbert when I say it.

"So, this is the newbie? Guess I have another person to teach my awesomeness to," Gilbert jokes, smirking at Ivan on my shoulders. I shake my head at him and reach up for Ivan, pulling him off my shoulders and setting him down on a chair. His scarf seemed to tighten around me when I tried to move away.

"Ivan, do you want me to sit with you?" I asked him, receiving a nod from him.

"Geez, you baby him. You're like Sarah was her chibis," Gilbert comments, wilting slightly at the mention of my grandmother. I sigh and look up at Gilbert from where I was now sitting with Ivan in my lap. He looks pained, but it's more of an emotional pain than a physical one. I honestly hate the way everyone acts around me, even though I know they're just trying to cope with everything too.

"Gilbert, I want to start over with you and everyone else. Do you think we could all meet up in the living room?" I ask, surprising him slightly with my request. He nods and moves back into the hallway, starting to gather everyone up.

"What are you going to do Mama?" Ivan asks, twisting around so he can look up at me.

"I'm going to wing it."

* * *

 **Ok, I lied, this one had a lot of Ivan fluff too. I just couldn't help myself! I was actually wondering something, would you be willing to have another contest? The prize would be a sneak peek at the next story I publish, which is about my OC Israel and her history as a nation. If not, that's cool, I was honestly just wondering. Thanks for reading, comment your thoughts on the chapter and the contest idea, and look forward to the next chapter!**


	15. Chapter 15

**Sorry for not updating in a few days! School work was catching up with me and it was not fun. I'm here now, so let's get this chapter rolling! CONTEST INFO AT THE END! Thanks for reading and enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

 _Oliver was jumping at everything and couldn't get the sense of guilt to leave him alone. He wasn't feeling guilty about killing that man; he was feeling guilty about going behind Sarah's back to do it. He had broken one of the very few rules she asked them to follow, it had also been her most important rule. He just couldn't control himself when he saw the black eye Sarah had. It hadn't been made any better when Sarah told him it's happened before. Oliver just couldn't understand how Sarah hadn't left the relationship the first time._

 _His anger had boiled over and he had grabbed his favorite butcher knife. Next thing he knows, he's in the bathroom and washing his clothes in the tub. There was something else though, an impending sense of doom and the ever lingering shame hanging over him. His actions, if found out by Sarah, could have horrendous consequences on him and the other units._

 _Oliver sighed and put down the knife he was using to chop vegetables. He had messed up, he knew it too, and there wasn't any going back. He had two options before him. Oliver could confess what he had done or he could pray it never reared its ugly head to Sarah. He closed his eyes and sighed just as Sarah came into the kitchen._

" _Oliver, can we talk?" Sarah asks. At this moment, despite not knowing what Sarah actually wanted to talk about, Oliver knew she had found out. Oliver knew she was angry and many other things, but mostly disappointed. Oliver knew it was over and that he couldn't fix it this time, no matter how many cupcakes he made._

* * *

Ivan was trying to help me figure out how this TV worked while we waited for the other units to come out. He wasn't very helpful, though, considering he had been given modern knowledge and this technology was very dated. "I do not think it can turn on, Mama," he tells me, holding up the stick with buttons curiously.

"Screen on," I say, trying the modern turn on method again. I frown and shake my head when it doesn't work for me. "I think you're right Ivan. It seems bent on staying off," I agree, sighing with frustration at the screen. I look up as Gilbert walks back into the living room with everyone in tow.

"Oh, is this the new unit? He's adorable," Oliver says happily. He walks over to Ivan and smiles, holding his hand out. Ivan moves behind me, hiding from view, and clutches my shirt. "He must be shy. My name is Oliver, but you can call me Ollie."

"Go on Ivan, Oliver is nice," I urge him. Ivan looks up at me and slowly steps out. He puts a hand in Oliver's and lets it be shaken. I smile at him, encouraging him to say something to Oliver.

"My name is Ivan. It is nice to meet you," he says quietly. The others come up and introduce themselves as well. Ivan seems to like Matthew best, seeing as how the scarf twitched a little when he introduced himself. After everyone had been introduced, I move to the front of the living room. Ivan follows me and clings to my leg, one end of his scarf wrapping around my thigh and the other around my hand.

"I think we all got off to a bad start. Things have been crazy with my grandmother dying, units not waking up, and Ivan arriving so suddenly. I don't think this is what my grandmother had in mind when she wanted me to come here. We should start over and get to know each other," I say a little nervously.

"I have a question," Lovino says. I look at him and nod, waiting for him to ask it. "Why didn't Sarah visit us?" he asks. Even though he's glaring, his eyes betray how sad he is, along with the rest of the units.

"I honestly can't answer that, but she talked about you all the time. Whenever I went to see her, she would tell me stories about the times she had with you. I know that she still loved you guys, but I don't know why she wouldn't visit you," I answer truthfully. When I had finally learned it was her and Auntie in the stories I had asked her the same thing, but she never answered me. She would just get a sad look on her face and change the subject.

"Was she happy?" Allen asks. I look at him, but can't tell what he's feeling because of the sunglasses covering his eyes and the neutral expression on his face.

"She always seemed happy to me, but she used to tell me her life wasn't as complete as it used to be. She really missed you guys, if that's what you meant," I reply. Allen nods and goes quiet again, head turned to look towards the kitchen instead of at me. "I have a question of my own, if it's alright to ask."

"Only if it's awesome enough," Gilbert replies. He's the only one grinning right now, but I get the feeling the grin is fake. Matthew nudges him and shakes his head, almost scolding him for saying that. "Fine, even if it's unawesome we'll answer it," he concedes.

I nod and take a deep breath, knowing I may not get the most welcome reception of this question. "Why did my grandmother bring you back here? I want to know what happened," I tell them. Almost instantly, everyone's eyes turn to Oliver as he stares holes into the rug beneath his feet.

"That is not a happy story poppet," he warns, looking up at me with pained eyes.

"I never said I expected it to be," I reply. Oliver sighs and nods, looking back down at the floor again.

"Alright then, sit down, it's story time poppets."

* * *

 **Yeah, this chapter was a little shorter than usual and the next one is too, but you get to find out what happened and how the units ended up back in the old house. CONTEST INFO: The contest is rather easy. All you have to do is guess my age. The one who is closest to it withing two days (by Tuesday) will win the contest. The prize is getting a sneak peek at the FULL first chapter of my new story. I will PM the winner, so make sure you're logged into your account when you send in your guess. Thanks for reading, comment your thoughts on the chapter, may the odds be ever in your favor, and look forward to the next chapter!**


	16. Chapter 16

**This chapter is a little shorter than the rest. Just think of it as Oliver telling the story of what happened to him and Sarah, but you get to see it in a different viewpoint than everyone else. Also, the contest is still going. If I don't get anything in the comments by Friday, then I am just going to drop it all together and you'll have to wait for me to publish the story, which was going to be after I finish this one. I'm not too concerned either way, it was just supposed to be a fun incentive for you loyal readers. Thanks for reading and enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

" _Oliver, I want you to tell me what you did," Sarah says. Her voice is somehow even despite the swirling emotions inside her. She's conflicted between anger, sadness, disappointment, and relief. Oliver looks at her and can practically see it all running through her mind. "Oliver, please," she pleads, taking a step closer to him._

 _Oliver's lip starts trembling and his eyes start tearing up. He engulfs Sarah in a hug, more for him than her, and cries on her shoulder. "I'm so sorry, I'm so, so sorry," he cries, gasping between sobs. Sarah cracks and hugs Oliver, rubbing his back and shushing him quietly._

" _Ollie, I just want to know what happened. I promise I won't get mad," she says quietly, just loud enough to be heard over Oliver's cries. Oliver nods, though he's still crying and hiccupping as he does so._

" _I just got so angry at him for hurting you. I picked up a knife and made sure he wouldn't hurt you again. I'm sorry for breaking a rule! Please don't send me back to the company, I love everyone here and would miss you all so terribly much," he pleads. Oliver falls to his knees and hugs Sarah around the waist, pleading and crying even harder than before._

 _Sarah bends over as much as she can and pats Oliver's head lovingly. "Ollie, I'm not sending you back. I'm not happy with what you did, but I understand why you did it," she tells him. Oliver looks up, his pink eyes puffy and reddened from crying, and stops crying for a moment before bursting into tears again._

" _I don't deserve you! You're too kind for me. I should just be turned off forever and left to rot in an unmarked grave!" he cries. Sarah's eyes widen and she falls to her knees in front of Oliver._

" _Oliver! Don't you ever say that again! I know you messed up and all, but that's no reason to believe you should die. Now, we just have to figure out what we're going to tell Scotland Yard and Kiki," Sarah says, making Oliver stop crying long enough to listen to reason. He nods and picks himself up, wiping away the tears and sniffling a little, and holds a hand out to Sarah._

 _Sarah gratefully takes it and hugs Oliver again when she's up. "What are we going to do? I royally screwed up this time and I doubt the Yard is going to be very forgiving," he says quietly. Sarah thinks a moment, but shakes her head, lost for an answer. Her phone starts ringing and she pulls it out and, seeing the familiar logo of the delivery company, answers it._

" _Yes, this is Sarah…..How did you know about that already?!...Really? Wires in the units for that?...No, we don't know what we're going to do yet…..You can arrange that? What's the catch?...All of them have to go even though only Oliver broke a rule?….Yes, I understand….Thank you for this, I really do appreciate it," she says into the phone, with Oliver only hearing her half of the conversation. Sarah puts the phone away and looks up at Oliver._

" _What did they say?" he asks hesitantly, not really sure that he wants to hear the answer._

" _They can arrange plane tickets for everyone to go back to the old house. They'll take care of the Yard for us too, but all of you have to go and I can't stay with you. The company said it was the only way for all of you to stay together," she replies, already on the verge of tears._

" _Do we get to stay awake?" Oliver asks fearfully. Sarah shakes her head and puts her phone down, looking sadly to Oliver. "We have to do it anyway."_

" _What are we going to tell the others? And Kiki, what about Kiki? She'll fight tooth and nail against this!" Sarah protests. She's arguing for Kiki, but really for herself as well. She doesn't want any of them to go, but she knows there isn't really a choice in the matter._

" _I don't know Sarah. I just know they won't be very happy with either of us," Oliver replies, looking her straight in the eye with a renewed conviction. "I know what I did wrong and this is the way to fix it. Neither of us wants me imprisoned and we all want to stick together. This is definitely the only way around that."_

 _Sarah sighs and nods, not liking any of this one bit, but knowing this is the only way to go. "Alright Ollie, we'll do take care of it this way, but we have to let everyone know about it tonight," she concedes. Oliver nods and breaths out a sigh of relief._

" _It's alright Sarah, we'll get through this."_

* * *

 **So, now we know the whole truth. Oliver killed Sarah's boyfriend for being abusive to her during the relationship. If you didn't get it until now, then at least you finally do. Thanks for reading, comment your thoughts, and look forward to the next chapter!**


	17. Chapter 17

**Holy shit guys, I haven't updated in three days! Let's be honest, though, that's probably better than other authors on here. Anyway, I'm on break this coming week, starting Monday, so updates are going to be every day and I'll probably end up finishing the story too. Anyway, this chapter is also the last one I'll take entries for the contest. So far there is just one. Thanks for reading and enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

Oliver looked close to tears while he told me what had happened. I was conflicted between two emotions at the moment, the overwhelming want to hug him and the crippling urge to run back to the airport and fly home. Inheritance or not, I wasn't so sure if I wanted to live in the same house as someone who admitted to committing _murder_ in cold blood. Why did my grandmother send me to live with a killer?! So many emotions and questions were running through me right now and I didn't know what to do with any of them.

"What the hell?! You murder a man and just get off scotch free? In what world is that how anything works?! You should have been sent to Scotland Yard or deactivated or something! YOU DON'T KILL PEOPLE AND THEN GET AWAY WITH IT!" I yelled, already pacing the floor and trying to wrap my head around what he had told me.

"Oi! Who the hell said you could talk to him like that?! I don't care if you are Sarah's granddaughter, you can't yell at Oliver! If he hadn't done it, then one of the other bastards would have," Lovino yelled back, jumping up from the couch to stand in front of Oliver protectively. Oliver looked like he wanted to say something, but was continuously interrupted by everyone else.

"THAT DOESN'T MAKE IT RIGHT YOU IDIOT! Murder is murder and it's not legal in any country," I shoot back, glaring at Lovino. Matthew stands up and gets between us, which is probably a good thing. If Lovino had said anything else, I definitely would have tackled him.

"Look, yelling won't get us anywhere. Yes, Oliver did something bad. Yes, he got off free for it. No, that doesn't excuse his behavior. The only thing that matters is it's behind us. Obviously, Oliver has been in turmoil because of it, so calm down," he reasons, looking between the two of us with pleading eyes.

"Fine, it's not my fault the ragazza was being an idiota," Lovino grumbles. I don't lose my glare, but instead turn it towards Matthew. He seems to shrink under it and I realize I'm using the famous Death Stare women in my family are known for. He gulps and sits back down, not wanting to get me any angrier than I already am.

"Alright, I'll admit that I wasn't expecting murder to be the reason you're here. I'll also admit that your cause was noble, though the execution of it wasn't well thought out," I concede, nodding as I say it. I take a deep breath and look over the group again, noticing they all look pretty upset over the outbursts we just had.

"Look here, I know yer pretty new ta this family, but you've gotta wrap yer head around this being normal for us. We're all pretty messed up and that's only one example of it," Allen points out, leaning forward in his chair to look at me. I nod and take a few more deep breaths.

"Here's what I'm thinking, this is a crazy family. My grandmother was surprisingly good at dealing with this crazy and took everything in stride. I am not my grandmother; I don't know how to deal with this and don't know if I even can. Right now, Ivan seems the most normal out of all of you and he's the one with a _magic scarf_ that's currently wrapped around me. What am I doing?" I tell them, asking myself the last part.

Ivan looks up at me with concern obvious in his eyes. He turns to the others in the room and crosses his arms. "You are all bad people for making Mama mad. She is trying hard to get used to this and you just keep shutting her out and avoiding her. This is not what nice people do," he says, officially telling them off.

"How are we the bad people? We should be the awesome ones compared to her! She came out of nowhere with just bad news and then expects us to welcome her with open arms," Gilbert protests, gesturing to me while he does.

I glare at him, furious with the things he accused me of. "I only came out of nowhere because my family sent me here! They only sent me here because they wanted the goddamn money my grandmother left me! I didn't even know you people were here until I woke up Matthew! I never expected you to welcome me with open arms either! ALL I WANT TO DO IS MOURN MY GRANDMOTHER IN PEACE BUT I CAN'T EVEN DO THAT EITHER!" I shout, my voice having grown in volume to get to shouting. There are tears streaming down my face, I can feel them, and I know my fists are shaking.

"Poppet, we didn't mean to make you upset. All of this was sprung on us, that's all," Oliver says quietly, trying to calm me down. Somehow it just makes me even angrier and I turn on him too.

"You think this wasn't sprung on me either?! I literally left England not twelve hours after attending my grandmother's funeral! My family was all too happy to get me out of the house and come to America. I just learned that the people my grandmother talked about all the time are from an anime! I just learned that one of them is a murderer who goes crazy and then doesn't remember going crazy! Can you blame me for being upset?!" I ask him, putting my hands on my hips and leaning forward slightly.

Oliver sits down again, unsure how to respond to my outburst. I wait for someone else to say something, but they don't and that leaves me unsure of what to do. I wipe away the tears that were falling and look down at Ivan, who has the same glare I did earlier. "Ivan, it's fine, you don't have to glare at them anymore."

"But Mama, they were being mean to you," he protests, looking up at me innocently.

"I know, but they didn't mean it. We were all under pressure and a lot of things have been happening lately. I doubt we can blame them," I reply. Ivan nods, but he sends them one last glare. I still have so many thoughts swirling around in my head and I really need to clear them. "I think I'm going to go for a walk."

"Don't get lost dearie, none of us are ready for another night long search," Oliver tells me, smiling sadly. I nod, thinking about the story grandmother told me about it. I start walking towards the door, Ivan following me without my knowing.

* * *

 **And here we have a sane reaction to finding out stuff like that! This would have become very Mary Sue if the reader just accepted it. Anyway, I hope you guys enjoyed that chapter! Thanks for reading, comment your thoughts, and look forward to the next chapter!**


	18. Chapter 18

**Alright, this chapter has a lot of thinking in it and we get to see Conrad again and then we can get into units appearing. Thanks for reading and enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

I only notice Ivan after fifteen minutes, which just shows how distracted I am. "Ivan, have you been following me this whole time?" I ask him.

"Yes, I wanted to make sure you stayed safe," he replies, smiling up at me. I smile back softly and pick him up, putting him on my shoulders like earlier. We don't say anything for a while, just keep walking in silence. I end up walking past the town and into a whole other neighborhood, one that isn't as well off as ours is.

I'm not saying this was the poor side of town, just that it was the middle-class side. This was the suburbs and had houses like the one I used to live in. They just made me homesick and I suddenly wanted to go back to England even more than before. It made me miss the endless stream of traffic that was always there and the people constantly battling each other to be heard over it.

Then, my thoughts turned to the units who were probably still sitting on that couch and trying to figure out what had just happened. Oliver had made one mistake and it had cost them everything they loved. The guilt had to be immense and completely overwhelming; something they had to live with even if they didn't want to. I doubt they deserved being exiled to America but, at least, they hadn't been completely shut down.

Then again, I didn't know them very well. All I knew was the stuff my grandmother had told me and even that was nothing in comparison to the history they have together. I began to think of the photo album my aunt had snuck into my bag. They all looked so happy in it and had seemed like the picture perfect family. I had learned long ago that there was no "normal" family, just the ones that get along through thick and thin. Grandmother had been the closest thing I had to that and she had left me. I can't blame her, though, it was her time and she took it in stride.

"Ivan, what should I do if I'm really confused?" I ask him, breaking the silence as we exit the neighborhood. A large school is showing itself in the distance and I almost wish I hadn't already graduated yet. I hadn't liked the learning much, just being able to watch other people and pretend to know what went on in their lives. It had been my escape when I was annoyed or tired of everything else.

"You should do something that makes you calm. It will clear the mind and allow better thinking," Ivan replies, breaking me out of my thoughts.

"You seem wise beyond your years. That's a very good thing to be Ivan," I tell him, walking closer to the school. Multiple cars become visible in the lot and I realize it's Tuesday, a school day. I don't know how the days escaped me, but they had managed to slip through my fingers without me trying to stop them.

"Go somewhere quiet, that is very relaxing and will help," he adds, patting my head for added effect. I giggle at how adult he's trying to be, despite currently riding on my shoulders. "Mama, why did you leave them like that?" Ivan whispers, just barely audible.

My face falls and I'm silent for a moment, not sure how to respond. "I needed to think. Everything has been thrown at me and I don't know how to handle it. I always knew Grandmother was sad about something but I never expected it to be this." Ivan doesn't respond to this, he just stays quiet and allows silence to fall over us again.

I stop in front of the school and take in the large building. There are a few people walking out, but not in the familiar wave that signals the end of the day. I almost consider going to the school, though I don't know why. My feet make the decision for me by walking away from the school with conviction.

"Oi, Scones, are you stalking me now?" an irritatingly familiar voice asks. I groan and turn around again to see Conrad standing there with that same grin. His eyes register confusion at the sight of Ivan but it's quickly covered up again.

"Why in the world would I stalk a self-centered idiot like you?" I shoot back, glaring at him.

"Ouch, that hurt Scones, it really did," he replies, feigning hurt and putting his hand to his heart. Conrad walks up to us, that grin back on his face, and stops right in front of me. "I'm really hurt, you know. I thought we had something special and, next thing I know, you're walking around town with a kid."

"God, you're annoying. It's not humanly possible for me to have had a kid since you last saw me. For all you know, Ivan was already with me at the house when you visited," I point out, crossing my arms since I know we're going to be here a while.

"How should I know? You haven't been as open in this relationship as you should be," Conrad says, gaining an even more annoyed glare from me.

"One, this is not and never will be any sort of relationship. Two, Ivan is my little brother and not my kid," I tell him. I don't give him a chance to respond, just spin on my heel and start speed walking away. Conrad stops me almost instantly, grabbing the crook of my elbow and moving in front of me again.

"You seem off Scones. Wanna tell me what's got you so testy today?" he asks, a glint of true concern showing in his eyes. I hesitate, which surprises me. I should be responding with a flat out no to his offer but I'm not.

"It's kind of a long story and I can't give you full detail," I tell him, practically begging him to walk away and leave me alone. Yet, deep down, there is another part of me that wants him to say he'll listen and give me advice.

"Then I guess it's a good thing I've got time."

* * *

 **And here we see a Conrad that can actually read the situation, a rare sight indeed! The next chapter is mostly Conrad giving his view on the issues and all that fun stuff. Thanks for reading, comment your thoughts, and look forward to the next chapter!**


	19. Chapter 19

**I'm pretty happy with how long this one is, so yay! This chapter includes an okay Conrad! Such a marvel it is! By the way, Carl's Jr. is the name of the fast food joint for the east coast. On the west coast, it is called Hardee's. It's literally the same menu and everything, just different names. Even the logos are the same! Thanks for reading and enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

Conrad leads us to a fast food place called Carl's Jr., which led to me asking if the food was any good and him replying with, "You're about to get the best burger of your life." I gave him a disbelieving look and received that obnoxious grin in return. By then I had also moved Ivan so I was carrying him in my arms. I look down at him, silently asking him to tell me what I was doing, and he shrugs in response.

I beat Conrad to the door and hold it open for him, earning myself confused looks from other customers of the place. Conrad doesn't say anything while we're line, leaving me to contemplate his motive for doing this. He was being unusually nice and it was confusing. Granted, I had only been around him for a few minutes, but he had been a real jerk for them. "Scones, you have to tell her what you want," he says, wrecking my train of thought.

My eyes travel to the menu and I realize just how greasy the food here is. "I'll have a number three please. Ivan, do you want a burger too or chicken nuggets?" I ask him, thankful they have a kids' menu.

"The chicken nuggets please," he replies, looking at the woman behind the register. She nods and puts the order into her computer.

"You're total is twenty dollars and seventy three cents," she says, a fake smile plastered on her face. At least fast food workers are the same no matter what country you're in. I balance Ivan in one arm and try to get my phone with the other. My bank app has an online version of my card that can be scanned to pay for things. "Thank you very much, your food will be out momentarily," she says. I look up and see Conrad putting his wallet away.

"Come on Scones, let's get a booth before they're taken during the rush," he tells me. Conrad starts walking away and I follow him, realizing he must have paid for Ivan and I just now. He takes us to a booth towards the back of the building and sits down on one side.

Ivan gets out of my arms so he can sit on the other side before I get in. He looks up at me once he's sitting, patting the seat next to him expectantly. I smile and sit next to him; Ivan instantly moves closer to me in the booth and his scarf wraps around my hand. "I'll pay you back for the food later," I promise, looking at Conrad.

He waves his hand dismissively and shakes his head. "Nah, it's on me today. Just consider it a gift," he insists. I frown a little but nod anyway, not willing to argue at the moment. "So, what seems to be the problem?"

I hesitate again, reconsidering telling him after all. He gives me an expectant look and I sigh, deciding it's the least I could do after he payed for my food. "You may know this already, but the only reason I'm in America is because of my grandmother's will. In order for me to get the money she had put away for me, I had to come stay in her old house. I didn't want to, but my family forced me to because it would mean they get access to the money as well.

"I didn't know what to expect when I got here. People already being in that house was no where near the top of the list. In fact, that wasn't even on the list! Then, I find out they're the people I always heard stories about from my grandmother. Not only that, but they were technically banished here for some horrible reason I just found out about and I'm currently freaking out right now and I really don't know what to do," I explain, running out of breath on the last bit.

Conrad starts to say something, but is interrupted by our order number being called. "I'll be right back. Just hold that thought," he says, getting up and going to the counter. I look down at Ivan and he has a frown on his face.

"What's wrong?" I ask him worriedly.

"Do you regret coming here? Do you regret waking up the others? Do you regret getting me as a result?" he asks, avoiding my gaze with a passion.

"Ivan, of course I don't regret you! You're probably the best part of all this," I tell him. Ivan looks up at me with wide eyes, almost like he doesn't believe me. I flash him a reassuring smile and hug him tightly.

Conrad comes back with the food just then and sets the tray down on the table. He puts a bag in front of me, another in front of Ivan, and the final one in front of himself. "Alright, where were we?" he asks, pushing the tray to the side.

"I had just told you the problem and you were about to give me advice," I tell him. I eye the bag in front of me and look inside. I pull out the burger and my eyes widen when I see how big it is. Ivan pulls out a small box and starts eating the chicken that's inside it.

"There's something you have to ask yourself. Do you actually want to go back to England? It's sounds like your family's pretty crappy, since they sent you here just for the money," he tells me.

I think about it while I unwrap the monstrosity they insist is a burger. "Of course I don't want to go back to England, but I don't really want to stay here either. I mean, I feel bad for them but I still don't know if they can be trusted. He seems to regret what he did but, for all I know, he's an amazing actor," I reply. I take a bite of the burger and am pleasantly surprised with how good it tastes. It's no fish and chips, but it's something I can see as an acceptable substitute.

Conrad thinks for a moment while he eats a few fries. "Maybe he really does regret it. Those guys have been in that house for as long as I can remember and you're the first person I know that's actually gone in there. Gramps says they've been there since he graduated college. That's a long time to reflect on what you've done," he points out.

I nod and don't say anything in response. "What are you saying? That they're lonely or something?" I ask him.

Conrad shakes his head at this. "I'm saying, they probably want a chance to prove they're not horrible people. Not to you specifically, but to themselves," he clarifies. I let that sink in and realize he's right.

They've basically been left alone for fifty years and the first thing that happens to them is finding out Sarah died. Not only that, but the others don't wake up and they've got five people they'll never get to see again. They were being faced with all this hardship and it probably only cemented how worthless they thought themselves to be. Ivan showing up was probably like a slap in the face.

"I think I need to get going," I say quietly. Conrad looks up at me, confusion obvious on his face.

"What are you talking about? We just got our food," he replies.

"I need to go talk to them again. Ivan, pack up the food, we can finish eating on the way if we need to," I tell him. Ivan nods and starts putting everything back into his bag while I do the same with mine. Conrad relents and nods his head.

"Fine, but our second date is definitely gonna be at a movie theater," he says confidently. I freeze for a moment before speeding up the packing. I grab Ivan and balance him on one arm with my food in the other.

"Look, I appreciate the food and the advice, but this was not a date. We will not go on a second date because there wasn't a first," I explain to him, growing irritated already.

"What I'm hearing, is that you want a first," he replies, flashing me that obnoxious grin and ruining any respect I had gained for him. I groan and roll my eyes before starting to walk away. "Come on Scones, I'll be getting that first date soon!"

"Don't threaten me," I call back. I walk out the door and start speed walking through town and towards the town. "Ivan, if he ever tries to take me on a date, you can strangle him with the scarf," I say to him. Ivan smiles and nods, munching on some fries while we walk through town.

* * *

 **And Conrad's a jerk again. Wow, that really didn't last long. Next chapter is going to make reader happy, I promise! Trust me, although that might be the one thing you shouldn't listen to authors about. Thanks for reading, comment your thoughts, and look forward to the next chapter!**


	20. Chapter 20

**I loved the comments, honestly, they were great! Thanks for them! This chapter is where the new unit shows up but its identity is not revealed. Enjoy the chapter and thanks for reading!**

* * *

Ivan and I ate as we walked, using it as an excuse for the silence that had fallen over us. I still wasn't sure what I was going to say to the others, just that I had to come up with something. "Ivan, do you have any ideas of what I should say?" I ask, breaking the silence between us. Ivan is silent for a moment, stuffing his trash into the greasy paper bag from Carl's Jr., so he can think.

"You should tell them they are forgiven. It was out of their control. You are still their friend. That will make them feel better," he tells me. Ivan drops the bag into a trashcan as we pass it. I finish up my fries and drop my trash into the next can we pass.

"Are you sure Ivan? I just...want them to feel better," I say. Ivan nods and stays silent, letting me continue talking. "I really want to trust them and they haven't done anything bad to me."

Ivan smiles and looks up at me. "I think you are a very good person. It takes a lot to forgive people for something like that," he says quietly. I smile back at him and nod gratefully. The house comes into view around the corner and I speed up again.

"You'll stay with me, right? While I'm talking to them, I mean," I ask him, growing even more nervous just from the house being visible.

"Of course Mama, I will stay with you always," he promises. I nod and take a deep breath as I walk up the driveway of the house. The door is unlocked when I try to open it and I wonder if I had even locked it on the way out.

"Guys, I'm home! I was wondering if we could all talk in the living room again," I say, loud enough for anyone in the house to hear me. No one responds and I frown slightly as I close the door behind us. "Let's look for them," I say to Ivan, glad he's there so it doesn't look like I'm talking to myself.

We decide to start in the living room, which is where we find them. They're all asleep in the room, somehow able to not wake up despite my yelling and their odd sleeping positions. Oliver is laid across the couch with Allen lying upside down on it. Lovino is asleep on the coffee table while Matthew and Gilbert are a tangle of limbs in a recliner. I let a sigh of relief escape me, glad nobody is hurt.

"I think we should let them sleep," I whisper to Ivan. He nods and I turn to go into the hall leading to our room. Just as I am about to close the bedroom door behind us, the doorbell rings a few times and my eyes widen. I rush to the door, silently cursing when I see Matthew stir.

I open the door and step outside, closing it behind me quickly, before looking up at the visitor. "Hello Miss (Y/N), how has the new unit been treating you?" Brad asks with a broad smile on his face. I smile back at him, glad it wasn't Carlson or some stranger at the door.

"Ivan's been great. He's very loving and really cute," I reply, leaning against the door and looking up slightly to see his face.

"That's wonderful news! I'm just here to drop off your second unit. The company told me this would be the last one delivered to you. They said it was because the units that didn't wake up weren't yours to begin with, so you wouldn't be getting as many as were lost," he explains. Brad points over his shoulder to a large crate, making me wonder how I didn't notice it before.

"Thanks, I really appreciate it. I was wondering, did you have any news about the units who didn't wake up?" I ask him, figuring the others would be glad to hear anything.

"I do, actually, they have all been shipped to new owners and are working like new. The Germany unit ended up in Australia with a new customer. We kept the Chibitalia and HRE unit together; they're currently in Algeria with a customer that has two other units. The Romano unit is in Spain right now with a customer that, ironically, has a Spain unit. From what the company told me, they're all happy with their new owners and show no signs of remembering their past owner," he reports.

I smile at the news, glad the units are happy in their new homes. "That's great, I'm glad they were able to get such nice owners. Even though we're not receiving any more units, I'd appreciate regular updates. Is that possible?" I ask him.

Brad nods and pulls a card and pen out of his shirt pocket. "Just write down your email and I can send you regular updates," he offers. I nod and take the card and pen gratefully. I jot down my primary email and pass them back.

"Thanks again. I'm sure the other units will be glad to hear how well they're doing. I do have one more question. Could you help me bring this one in?" I ask him, pointing at the crate.

"I'd be happy to. Just open up the door for me and I can bring it right in," he tells me. I nod and open up the door, standing out of the way while he rolls the crate in on his little cart all delivery men seem to have. Brad sets it down inside and walks back out the door. "It was a pleasure Miss (Y/N)," he says, tipping his cap slightly in my direction.

"It's been a real blast," I reply, waving at him before closing the door and looking at the box he just wheeled in. On top is an envelope that I know will have the usual information. I start to reach for it, but the sound of crashing and a stream of curses distract me. I rush into the living room and realize Lovino had rolled off the table and woken up when he landed harshly on the floor. "Lovino, are you alright?" I whisper.

Lovino looks up at me in surprise and his eyes widen. He jumps up and hugs me tightly, muttering something I can't understand because it's in Italian. "Don't do that again ragazza! You were gone for a long time and we all got worried," he chides me. After getting over the initial surprise of Lovino liking me enough to hug me, I give him a hug back.

"Sorry Lovino, I just needed time to think. I have something to say to everyone, though, so do you think we could wake them up?" I ask him. Lovino nods and lets go of me, glancing over at the others.

"Yeah, these idiotas will sleep all day if we let them. By the way, you can call me Lovi, if you want. It's not like I care either way," he says, mumbling the last bit. I smile and nod happily at him.

"Thank you, Lovi."

* * *

 **So, honestly, Brad is like the unnamed hero of this story! All delivery people are. Just wanted to say that. Next chapter we get to meet the new unit! Thanks for reading, comment your thoughts, and look forward to the next chapter!**


	21. Chapter 21

**I have been having a wonderful day! (Note: seething sarcasm detected!) Anyway, sorry about taking a little bit to update! I honestly hate myself for taking too long sometimes. Thanks for reading and enjoy the chapter!**

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It took us a few minutes, but Lovi and I were able to get everyone awake. Ivan had come out to see what was taking me so long at the door and, when he saw everybody awake again, stood next to me at the front of the living room. His scarf wraps around my calf and waits for me to say anything. I take a deep breath, gathering the courage I can, before saying anything. "I just wanted to start off by apologizing for anything I've done that may have upset you. I would give excuses but they're useless, considering I should have been more sensitive to how all of you felt," I say, looking down slightly.

"It's alright Doll, we can't exactly blame you. This family is pretty damn messed up," Allen says, a grin forming on his face. Oliver holds out a jar to him which Allen deposits a quarter into. "Like I said, there's no need for you to apologize."

"He's right. You're not at fault for anything here. It's our fault for not being more welcoming to you. I guess we just got caught up in Sarah and the others that we forgot you had lost someone too," Matthew adds, nodding in agreement with Allen.

"Don't worry, I'm awesome enough to forgive you too," Gilbert says, earning himself an elbow in the ribs from Matthew. He grins sheepishly and rubs the area Matthew nudged. "I mean, you're too awesome to not forgive."

I look at Oliver, knowing Lovi already forgave me, and wait for anything he's going to say. "So, you're not mad at me for murdering someone? You aren't disgusted in any way?" he asks me.

"I'm not disgusted or scared or angry. I don't have any right to be, because what happened is over with. I just want us to all get along, like my grandmother had in mind when she sent me here," I reply, smiling softly at him.

Oliver beams and jumps up, crossing the room to envelop me in a hug. He keeps an arm around me and turns a little to face the others. "I am initiating a group hug! Everybody get over here," he orders.

Matthew gets up first and hugs my other side. The others join him and I'm soon surrounded by all of them. I can hardly breathe from how hard they're hugging, but a huge smile is still on my face. "Alright, all this touchy feely crap is becoming too much! Let go of me you idiotas," Lovi orders, wriggling around to get away and making me laugh.

Everybody lets go and Lovi takes a few deep breaths, glad to have gotten away. I glance over at the hallway and suddenly remember about the unit waiting for us. "Guys, I have a few more announcements for you," I tell them. They become quiet and look at me expectantly, waiting to hear the news. "We have received our final unit from the company. I also found out about how the others are doing."

"Tell me about my brother first! Is he happy? Safe? How's he doing?" Lovi asks with a worried look on his face.

"Don't worry, they're all doing great. According to the company, they're all happy and safe with their new owners. I even arranged to get regular updates on how they're doing, so we can keep up with their progress," I inform them. They all let out an audible sigh of relief, glad the units are doing fine.

"You said there was a new unit. Do you know which one it is?" Matthew asks.

"I wasn't able to check before waking you guys up so we could talk," I reply.

"Well, let's welcome the new family member. He won't be as awesome as me though," Gilbert announces, walking towards the crate in the hall. He pulls down the envelope from the top of the crate and opens it, grinning when he sees the name. "Yes! This guy knows how to party!"

Allen gets curious and takes the manual from him, reading the name for himself. "Man, we're gonna have fun with this one," he tells us. Allen passes the manual to me and I can read the name for myself.

"They gave us a unit called Zao Wang," I announce, furrowing my eyebrows at the name since I don't recognize it. I don't pay much attention to the others' reactions, since I'm flipping through the manual to find the instructions for waking him up.

 _Thank you for ordering a Zao Wang unit. Waking up your new unit is fairly easy, but these are the safest methods. Please remain aware of how perverse and dangerous your new unit can be._

 _1- Light a joint, hold it on front of the crate, and offer it to the unit. He will open the door and smoke the joint before saying anything to you._

 _2- Ask the unit to hook you up with opiates, heroin, etc. and pull out cash. The unit will jump out excitedly and ask how much you want._

 _3- Stand in front of the crate and say a cheesy pick up line. The unit will burst out of the crate and say one back._

 _Thank you again and enjoy your unit!_

I read over the instructions once more, allowing the disbelief to show on my face. Oliver walks to me and reads over my shoulder. "I suggest the last one poppet. I'm fairly sure none of us have a joint and I'm not about to allow you to order drugs," he advises. I nod and give him the manual.

"Could everyone move out of the way? I'm not really sure how he's going to get out," I tell them. They move to crouch behind the couch, Ivan being the only one who stays by hiding behind my legs. I sigh and turn back towards the crate, thinking of the cheesiest pick up line I know. "Uh...I forgot my number, do you think I could have yours instead?" I ask it.

The door practically explodes open and the unit wraps his arm around my waist. "That depends on how well you can do math. Tell me, what do you get when you add me, add the bed, subtract the clothes, and divide the legs?" he asks me, grinning perversely. His brown eyes shamelessly travel over me, causing me to flush slightly. He has long brown hair pulled back in a ponytail. His clothes are probably the oddest part. The green top has a dragon design swirling around it with no sleeves and a high collar. His pants are obviously made of silk and are the same forest green as his top.

"Sorry, I was never very good in math," I reply, trying to get out of his grip.

"Well then, I guess you'll be needing an interactive tutorial," he tells me. My eyes widen as he leans closer like he's going to kiss me.

"Ivan now would be a good time to use that scarf," I say, leaning away from the unit. Ivan nods and his scarf wraps itself around Zao, immobilizing him and allowing me to get away. I send a glare towards the others, who are still crouching behind the couch. "Thanks for the help guys, you're real heroes," I say.

"Ooh, she's feisty too! I'm gonna have fun conquering this one," Zao comments. I can feel his eyes travelling up my body again and I shiver. I shake my head and wonder how I'm going to deal with a perverted unit.

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 **AHAHAHAHA! I gave you a perverted unit! XD I'm not apologizing for this one either! It's too much fun writing for him, honestly! Also, now that all of them are on good terms with each other, the fun and fluffier chapters can start! Thanks for reading, comment your thoughts, and look forward to the next chapter!**


	22. Chapter 22

**I honestly love school, homework, and everything else that keeps me from updating. Life was right when it created these things. Sorry about how long this took! Enjoy the chapter and thanks for reading!**

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We had Zao tied to one of the kitchen chairs that had been dragged into the living room. Allen had switched out Ivan's scarf with some rope from the garage. It honestly started feeling like we were trying to interrogate him for treason or something. The downside, however, was that he kept complaining about how we hadn't set the proper mood for tying him up. I became very annoyed with it all and made the executive decision to leave him there overnight while the rest of us got some well-needed sleep.

He couldn't stay quiet during the night. Zao kept shouting things that made me blush while I covered Ivan's poor ears. I didn't think I would be able to say this about anyone, but he's definitely worse than Conrad. That was a high hurdle to jump and Zao practically flew over it. Needless to say, none of us got very much sleep last night.

"My god, can't you shut up for two seconds?" I ask him as I walk into the living room. It had been two hours since I woke up and he still hadn't shut up.

"Of course not Sweet Cheeks, I'd much rather keep making you blush," he replies.

"I'm going to knock you out if you don't."

"Oh, so you're into the rough stuff? I can definitely work with that."

"No, I'm not into anything like that!"

"You're vanilla now? Come on Baby Cakes, pick something and stick with it! You could always stick to me."

"I'm not going to be sticking to anything. Especially not to you! Are you sure you don't have a power switch or something?"

"I have one."

"Really? Where is it?"

"It's in my pants. And it's always on."

I ground my teeth together and had to stop myself from slapping him across the face. It was infuriating to try and reason with him. "Just stop. Stop talking so I can think!"

"I can't stop talking unless something is in my mouth. Maybe your tongue can shut me up," he suggested, wiggling his eyebrows at me. Despite how annoying Zao is, he did give me a pretty good idea. I walked back into my room and ignored him as he called after me. When I got back a moment later, there was a bandana in my hand. "What's that for Muffin?"

"Oh, this? It's to keep your mouth occupied," I reply. I step forward and gag him, tying the bandana at the back of his head and enjoying the quiet for the moment. Unfortunately, it was ruined by the doorbell going off. I groaned and shuffled towards the front door, not wanting to talk with whoever was there. "Can I help you?" I ask as I open the door, not paying attention to who's there.

"Good morning to you too Scones. I've got to say, I never thought you could make patriotism look good," Conrad replies, eying my PJs. I look down and realize I'm just wearing a tank top and short pajama shorts designed to look like the Union Jack. I squeak slightly and close the door just enough to cover myself.

"What did you need?" I ask again, desperately trying to control the blush forming on my cheeks. I'm surprised that Conrad blushes next as he rubs the back of his head.

"I just wanted to see how things went yesterday after our talk. You seemed pretty upset and I just thought it would be a good idea to check on you," he admits, glancing up to look at me. My blush resurfaces full force and I shake my head to try to get rid of it.

"Wait here, I'll be right back," I tell him. Conrad nods and I close the door. I head straight for my room and change into jeans and a t-shirt, figuring I should spare myself more blushing. I also chide myself for blushing in the first place. What was I even thinking?

Conrad is still waiting at the door when I get back. I close it behind me and lean against it as I look up at him. "It went surprisingly well after I left. Thanks for the advice," I say, truly meaning it.

"It was no problem Scones. I believe you owe me now," he tells me, instantly making me suspicious of him. He grins and stuffs his hands into the pockets of his jeans. "Well, I helped you while you were in a bind. I believe you should return the favor," he explains.

Crap, he had a point. As much as I don't like to admit it, he had a really good point. I wasn't about to agree to that, but I could, at least, hear what he had in mind. "What were you thinking?" I ask.

"I'm very glad you asked Scones! See, I actually have a whole list of things planned out for this," he replies, pulling a piece of notebook paper out of his pocket. He passes it to me and I read it.

"This just says dinner and a movie. It sounds like a date," I tell him, looking up and noticing the smirk he has.

"That's because it is a date," he clarifies. My face instantly becomes emotionless and I glare at him. I shove the paper back into his hands and turn around to go back inside. "Come on Scones, why can't you just give me a chance?" he asks, grabbing my arm lightly.

"The first thing you said to me was that my accent was hot and then you wanted to know how I liked my tea before it was thrown into the harbor. Sorry if I don't exactly see you as the most appealing person on the planet," I shoot back.

Conrad looks speechless and I take it as my cue to leave. "Sorry about that, but I wasn't kidding about your accent," he says just as I'm about to close the door again. I look up at him and realize he was actually apologizing and he actually meant it.

"If I agreed, would you stop bothering me about it?" I ask him, opening the door just slightly.

"Yeah, promise I'll stop," he agrees, his eyes lighting up just a little. I scrutinize him for another minute before nodding.

"Come back at six and we can go," I tell him. I flash him a half smile before closing the door again. I look through the peephole to see Conrad punch the air in victory and walk down to the curb again. As I walk back into the living room, I start to wonder what I'm going to tell the others about this.

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 **I did this purely to have the next chapter be really fun. It'll be in third person POV since the units are going to be tracking their date. Thanks for reading, sorry about the wait, comment your thoughts, and look forward to the next chapter!**


	23. Chapter 23

**_IMPORTANT! PLEASE READ THIS! Due to some recent issues, mainly life, I have found it increasingly difficult to update as regularly as possible. You guys may have noticed this lately. I have considered all other options and decided on one. I AM TAKING A WEEK AND A HALF LONG BREAK FROM POSTING! I know this may seem like too much, but I think it's better than me not posting anything ever again. So please be patient while I try to figure out what I'm doing with my life. Thank you so much for understanding and I hope you enjoy the chapter!_**

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Oliver's head poked out from the bush he was currently hiding behind. He focused his attention on (Y/N) and Conrad, watching as they crossed the street. Allen looked down at Oliver and sighed, rolling his eyes as he does. "You look ridiculous. What are you even trying to do?" he asks.

Oliver looks up and shushes him. "We're tracking their date and trying to not get caught! Now get down and stay hidden," he orders, pulling Allen down into the bush. Allen falls with a muffled 'oomph' and glares at Oliver.

"We don't have to hide. They're not even looking our way. And why doesn't Zao have to hide?" Lovino asks, pointing at Zao. Said unit is standing across the street and flirting with two girls. Gilbert grins and picks up a rock. He weighs it in his hand and then chucks it at Zao, hitting him in the side of his head.

Zao rubs the spot hit by the rock and looks over at them. "That wasn't very nice!" he shouts. The two girls laugh and walk away, waving teasingly at Zao. He walks over to the others and glares at them. "I was going to get some tonight and you ruined it," he accuses. Allen shrugs and turns his attention back to where Conrad and (Y/N) should be.

"Guys, they moved again," he announces. Oliver jumps up and grabs Ivan, who had been quietly sitting next to him. Matthew sighs and follows after them, figuring he should at least try to keep Oliver out of trouble. "Damn, this is stupid. You guys want to go get drunk instead?" Allen asks, looking up at Zao and Gilbert.

"Sounds like a plan! Let's see if the beer here is as awesome as it should be," Gilbert replies. Zao shrugs and nods, grinning at the two of them. Allen grins and starts walking in the opposite direction of Oliver, Matthew, and Ivan. "I suggest we drink until we pass out!" he exclaims. Zao follows after the two of them and winks at any girls they pass.

Lovino looks between the two groups, honestly wondering if either of them would be worth following. He eventually shrugs his shoulders and walks across the street, going towards an older bookstore on the corner of the street.

"You know, those three have been following us for the past few minutes," Conrad says to (Y/N), glancing back at the three units. (Y/N) nods and sighs.

"Yeah, I've known since we left. It's a little weird," she replies.

"I know, I can feel that kid glaring holes into my back," Conrad says, shivering slightly.

"Ivan is just protective. He only wants his sister to have safety and happiness, which I'm not sure you can provide," she says. Conrad puts a hand to his chest and pretends to be wounded. He's speechless for a few minutes, just staring at her.

"I haven't insulted you at all today," he protests.

"Conrad, you asked me if I wanted fish and chips. You then asked me if I knew the Queen of England. That's like me asking if you know the president," she shoots back. Conrad opens his mouth to say something, but realizes she's right and keeps it shut. "Now that you see my point, was there anything else you wanted to do?"

Conrad thinks for a moment, trying to come up with an excuse to make the date last longer than it was. "There's an aquarium we could go to. Or a park that's got a merry-go-round in the center of it," he suggests.

(Y/N) considers the options, also considering just going home, and replies with, "The merry-go-round sounds like fun. I haven't been on one of those in a while." Conrad grins and grabs her hand, pulling her across the street and towards the park.

Oliver lets them get a few feet away before he grabs Matthew and follows him. Ivan continues to watch (Y/N) like a hawk, not willing to let her out of his sight. "Go faster, she is getting lost in the crowd," he says to Oliver, straining in his grip to get a better view. Oliver obliges and starts walking faster, pulling Matthew along behind him.

"Guys, can't we just leave her to the date and wait at the house for her to get home?" Matthew asks, trying to not fall as he gets forcibly pulled along. Oliver and Ivan look back at him like he's crazy and go back to watching Conrad and (Y/N). "Yeah, I didn't think so," he mutters.

"Do you think Sarah would be alright with us trailing her granddaughter like this?" Oliver asks, glancing back at Matthew. The other thinks about it and shrugs his shoulders. "I'm sure she'd be perfectly fine with it," he answers for himself. Ivan wriggles out of Oliver's grip and jumps to the ground, running towards Conrad and (Y/N) across the street. "Ivan! You shouldn't run away from us!" Oliver yells, running after the small unit.

Ivan catches up to (Y/N) and Conrad quickly and jumps onto (Y/N) in a hug. "Bloody hell! Ivan, you really scared me there!" she exclaims, adjusting Ivan so she's carrying him. Ivan smiles up at her innocently and hugs her again, glaring suspiciously at Conrad. Conrad puts his hands in the air at the glare and grins at him. "Ivan, don't glare at Conrad. You might catch his idiocy and we can't be having that."

"Really, Scones, really? That hurt a little. I think you actually hurt my feelings with that comment," Conrad says, putting a hand over his heart and the other on his forehead. "Dear me, I think I may faint from such insults!"

"If you faint, then I'm not catching you. I have to hold Ivan," (Y/N) tells him, grinning as she does. Ivan smiles happily at that and wiggles around in (Y/N)'s arms to get more comfortable.

"Wow, I can tell how much you actually like me now. Thanks a lot for that," Conrad says.

"Ivan! I told you to not run off!" Oliver says worriedly, coming up next to (Y/N) and pouting a little at Ivan. He looks up at Conrad and (Y/N) and smiles happily at them. "Hello poppets, lovely day for a walk isn't it?" he asks. Matthew comes up behind Oliver and waves at the two, a little tired from being pulled around by Oliver.

Conrad grins back and leads them into the park. "Looks like we all get to go on the merry-go-round," he tells them.

(Y/N) nods and looks excitedly at the merry-go-round before turning to Conrad. "And after that, we'll all go to our own homes and sleep," she replies.

"Does that mean we can go on a second date?"

"Maybe."

* * *

 **Thanks so much for reading guys! And I'm sorry about the break I'll be taking, but I'll be back in full swing in no time! Thanks for reading, comment your thoughts, and look forward to the next chapter whenever it comes out.**


	24. Chapter 24

**I'M BACK! It must be a miracle. Ok, as an apology for the super long break I took, this chapter is longer than my usual ones! I would also like to thank all of you for being patient with me. I managed to figure stuff out and should start updating regularly enough. Thanks for reading and enjoy the new chapter!**

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I hadn't seen Conrad after our date last weekend, though he kept texting me nonstop. I'm starting to regret giving him my number, but it was the only way to get him to actually leave the house when he walked me back. Nothing had really happened in that week other than Zao trying to set up a drug ring from the backyard. I walked out there one day and saw a line of people trailing from a table he was sitting and ending in the front yard.

"Zao, what are you doing?" I had asked him. I walked over to him and waited for the answer with my arms crossed. Zao looked up at me, a perfectly innocent smile on his face.

"I'm just making money to help pay the bills," he replied, holding up a huge wad of cash that could have covered our bills for a few months. I gave him a suspicious look and turned to one of the people in line, an older woman with bags under her eyes and limp hair.

"Could you tell me what you're here to buy exactly?" I asked her. She looked between Zao and me before answering me in a voice so quiet I had to strain to hear her.

"Rocks, powder, whatever you've got," was her reply. I nodded and turned to Zao, flashing him the glare of the century. He chuckles nervously and tugged at his collar like movie characters do when they're nervous.

Needless to say, Allen, Gilbert, and I got rid of all the people in the yard and had a long talk with Zao about why he couldn't set up a drug ring. Unfortunately, I'm not sure if he actually understood what we were trying to tell him. I only say this because we got a call this morning from the police station, asking us if we knew Zao and if we were able to pay bail for him.

I took Oliver and Ivan with me to bail out Zao, drumming my fingers against the steering wheel angrily as we drove. I'm pretty sure Oliver was nervous about how Zao would fare against my rage after we bailed him out. "I still can't believe he got himself arrested!" I say suddenly, braking at a red light.

"Now, poppet, we can't control Zao. The best we can do is advise him and try to be understanding," Oliver tells me, trying to get me to calm down even though I didn't want to. I sighed and glanced at Ivan in the rearview window.

"What do you think Ivan? Does Zao deserve forgiveness?" I ask him.

"He deserves punishment for making you angry. He should also be bowing down at your kindness. Mama is very good to be getting him," he replies, smiling at me. I smile back, feeling like Ivan's right and wondering how he always knows the right words to say. I turn my eyes back to the road and turn onto the street with the police station. "Also, we should lock him in the closet as punishment," Ivan adds.

I think about it for a moment before nodding a little. Oliver sees this and he shakes his head a little. "While I'm not entirely opposed to punishing Zao, he does deserve it after all, I think we should come up with something more appropriate," he says.

I turn into the station and park the car as close to the entrance as possible. I shut off the engine and look at Oliver. "We could always treat him like a piñata as punishment instead," I suggest, smiling sweetly at him. Oliver sighs and shakes his head a little, but doesn't say anything. I take it as a victory and get out of the car, going to the back seat so I ca grab Ivan.

"Mama, how much trouble is Zao in?" Ivan asks me. His scarf has already wrapped itself around my waist as I prop him on my hip. I consider the question while I close the door.

"Enough that you can keep him restrained during the ride back," I tell him. Oliver is waiting at the door for us and holds it open so I can walk in. I nod in thanks before going straight to the reception desk. The officer sitting there is male and has jet black hair in a buzz cut. His eyes are a warm chocolate brown and I can tell he's tall even though he's sitting. "Good morning officer, I'm here to post bail for Zao Wang," I tell him.

He looks up and analyzes me, taking in everything he can and I can't help but think about what he must be seeing. A young woman with a child propped on her hip and a man with pink hair and an innocent demeanor standing next to her. Geez, we must look like we fall on the crazy end of the stick. "Can I get your name please?" he asks, not saying anything about Ivan or Oliver.

"Yes, it's (Y/N)," I tell him.

"And how are you related to Mr. Wang?"

"He's my uncle."

"Your…uncle."

"Yes, I'm adopted. Now, could you please tell me how much his bail is?" I ask sweetly, pretty annoyed with having to lie to the police here. The officer flashes me one more skeptical look before pulling out a few forms and a pen. He puts them in front of me and nods to another officer, apparently telling them to get Zao.

"Sign these. The bail is right above the spot for your signature on each page. By signing this you are agreeing to the bail amount. You are also agreeing that you know Mr. Wang and that you will ensure he shows up for his court date. The court date is listed on the very back page which you will keep. Failure to appear on this date will result in a warrant for Mr. Wang and yourself. Any questions should be asked at this time," he says, his voice sounding lifeless and the words sounding practiced.

I set Ivan down on the counter so I could sign the pile of paperwork given to me. Ivan looked at the man silently, looking like he's about to ask a question. I glance up and notice the officer looking back at Ivan expectantly. "Why are you a receptionist? You are wearing a police uniform," Ivan says. My head almost slams down on the desk, half from Ivan's unknowing rudeness and half from trying to not laugh. Thankfully Oliver looks shocked enough for me.

"Ivan, that was a rude thing to ask," Oliver scolds, shaking his head and flashing the officer an apologetic look.

"No, it's alright. This isn't the first time a kid's asked me that. I'm not a receptionist; I just don't have my own desk yet. Until I get promoted to one, I help man the front desk," the officer replies, aiming the last bit at Ivan. Ivan nods and his eyes fall on the officer's badge, resulting in him just staring at him. The officer notices, but doesn't say anything, as I politely push the pile of papers back at him.

"There, I believe that was all of them," I say, folding up the paper I'm supposed to keep and putting it in my pocket. The officer, whose name I now realize is Rogers after reading his name tag, looks through them and nods when he confirms they're all filled out.

"This is everything. How would you like to pay for the bail?" he asks, looking back up at me. I pull out my wallet just as the other officer walks back in with Zao wearing handcuffs. He's grinning smugly and chatting up the guard like they're going out for coffee.

"I don't suppose you'd let us keep the handcuffs? And put tape over his mouth?" I ask, somewhat hopefully, as I pass Rogers a credit card. He chuckles a little and shakes his head.

"Unfortunately, we don't have enough money in the budget to replace handcuffs and tape," he replies jokingly, though I can tell he's somewhat serious.

"Don't worry dearie, Ivan can keep him restrained for us," Oliver reminds me. I nod a little, glad for Ivan's scarf. Rogers swipes my card in a machine and starts pressing a few buttons so he can charge it.

"Thanks for bailing me out Sweet Cheeks," Zao says, putting an arm over my shoulders once he's out of the handcuffs. I shrug him off and glare at him, not in the mood for any sort of joking around.

"There you go. Just be sure to show up for the court date and everything will be fine," Rogers says, passing the card back to me. I nod and take my card, thanking him for the advice. I'm about to pick up Ivan so we can leave again, but Rogers stops me. He takes off his badge, which Ivan's continued to stare intently at, and gives it to him. Ivan blinks and looks down at the badge now in his hands, a smile on his face. "Take good care of that badge. It means you get to make sure Mr. Wang doesn't break the law again."

Ivan's eyes light up and he nods excitedly. "Mama, can you put it on me?" he asks, turning to me. I flash Rogers an appreciative smile as I pin the badge to Ivan's shirt. Ivan smiles and fingers the badge while I pick him up. "Thank you very much," he says to the officer. Rogers nods and waves a little as we walk out of the station.

"That man was rather nice. I'm glad he wasn't rude or anything," Oliver comments once we're out the door. I nod a little and smile softly as Ivan stares at the badge happily.

"So, does that mean I'm not in trouble?" Zao asks. I glare at him a little and smack him upside the head. "Ow! You didn't have to hit me so hard!" he protests.

"Then don't get yourself arrested for selling drugs in the middle of a mall!" I shoot back.

"Guess I am in trouble," he mutters, resigning himself to his fate as he gets into the car. I put Ivan in and start thinking of ways to punish Zao for getting arrested as I start up the engine and head back to the house.

* * *

 **I swear Zao is going to be the death of reader's sanity. I really hope you guys liked that! It would suck if you got a bad chapter after waiting for so long... Anyway, thanks for reading, comment your thoughts, and look forward to the next chapter!**


	25. Chapter 25

**Look! I wasn't kidding or anything! It's a regular update! See?! Yeah, I'm pretty sure you do. Also, there is mention of mall cops being bad at their jobs in this chapter. I don't actually believe this to be true, it is just Allen's opinion. Ok, that was all I wanted to say. Thanks for reading and enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

"In my defense, I made a lot of money today," Zao says, trying to make us less angry with him. He's currently sitting on the couch with Ivan's scarf restraining him. I purse my lips and raise an eyebrow in response to his statement. "It's true! The people here are surprisingly open about buying their drugs," he adds. I can tell he thinks this will justify his actions, but he is sorely mistaken.

"How the hell did you even get caught? Mall cops suck at their job," Allen says. When I'd told everyone else about what had happened, he and Gilbert had busted out laughing at Zao's arrest. Apparently, they found this whole thing hilarious. Honestly, I would probably be laughing too if I wasn't so annoyed and angry.

Zao is quiet for a moment, which is pretty weird for him. The silence made me wonder if he was angry about how he'd been caught or something like that. "Well, some guy came up to me and asked to buy drugs. I looked around to make sure there weren't any cops. When I was sure there weren't any, I opened my jacket and told him what I had in each pocket and the price. The guy made the transaction and then showed me his badge when he had the drugs. Dude arrested me and said a bunch of stuff about my rights. Worst part is that he took all the money I had made and all my drugs," he explains.

It takes me a moment, but I realize he's most upset about the cops taking his money and drugs. Not about the guy being an undercover cop or the fact that he was caught, but about his stuff being taken as evidence. "You're a special kind of stupid, aren't you?" Lovi asks, an annoyed look on his face. "You shouldn't even be selling drugs at the mall in the first place! You do that shit in an alley," he adds.

"Please, don't give him ideas. I don't feel like bailing him out again," I tell Lovi. I look back at Zao and notice the look on his face. It's the kind of look idiots get when they think they've got the greatest idea in the world. "Oh no, you are not selling drugs again. We are not going through this again."

Zao pouts a little but nods. "What if I get other guys to do it for me?" he asks, thinking it might be an idea that changes my mind.

"No, I don't think that will work either dearie. We're rather adamant about not breaking the law," Oliver answers, speaking before I can give Zao a reply. I nod in agreement, giving Zao a look that confirms what Oliver said. He sighs and slumps on the couch a little. I think he gave up on arguing, which is honestly a huge relief.

"What if I just don't get caught again?" he asks.

"I'm going to slap you. I am literally going to slap you," I mutter, glaring at Zao. Matthew puts a hand on my arm, stopping me from actually moving towards Zao.

"That's probably not such a good idea. We just need Zao to understand that his actions have consequences. Think of it like we're dealing with a kid," Matthew tells me. I take a deep breath and nod so he'll move his hand.

"You're right. You're absolutely right. How do we make him realize that?" I ask, aiming the question to the others in the room. I get silence in return and sigh in exasperation.

"Oh! How about we let Ollie feed him a special cupcake," Gilbert offers, grinning at his own suggestion. Oliver pouts a little at him, which I can't really blame him for.

"Are you saying my cooking is bad?" Oliver asks.

"No, just that it's funny to see someone spaz when you give them a poisoned cupcake," Gilbert replies. Zao's eyes widen a little and he looks pretty nervous from the idea. "See? He's practically quivering from the idea!"

I look at Zao and seriously consider making him eat a cupcake. I mean, it doesn't exactly sound like a punishment, but these cupcakes must be serious if they're making Zao scared. "I won't make you eat one this time. If you get arrested again, however, I will personally watch you eat a dozen of those cupcakes," I threaten.

"I won't get in trouble again, I promise," Zao says, nodding frantically. I stay silent for a moment, considering if I should believe him or not.

Ivan looks up at me from his spot on the couch. "Mama, am I allowed to let him go now? He is sweating all over my scarf," Ivan says, looking a little disgusted.

"Yes, you can let Zao go now. I don't think he'll cause any more trouble for us. He will, however, be doing the chores until after his court trials are done," I reply, looking at Zao as I say the last bit. He groans but doesn't say anything to argue with me. Ivan nods and quickly pulls his scarf away from Zao, holding out the ends which are slightly damp from sweat.

"Why do you sweat so much?" Ivan asks Zao, a little unbelieving of the man's capabilities to produce this much sweat.

"I sweat when I get nervous. It's not my fault if your scarf was there to catch it all," Zao replies, shrugging a little.

I shake my head and hold my hands out to Ivan. "Do you want me to go wash that for you?" I ask him. Ivan hesitates for a few seconds before slowly pulling the scarf off and holding his arms up so I can carry him. I smile gently and pick him up, making sure I don't touch the sweaty scarf. "Alright guys, I'm going to go wash this scarf. You can start dinner if you want or we can order out, it's up to you," I tell them. They start arguing over it as I walk away, making me shake my head a little.

"Mama, what do you think they'll want?" Ivan asks me. I think a moment before answering him.

"I get the feeling Oliver will make an executive decision and just start making dinner," I tell him, being completely honest. "Whatever it is will be good," I add. Ivan nods a little and looks sadly at his scarf. "Hey, don't worry; it'll be clean and soft soon."

Ivan nods again and smiles. "Good, I don't like having it off," he admits. I smile back and ruffle his hair, making him giggle. I smile a little wider and hold him a little closer, glad he's such a good kid.

* * *

 **I don't know, I'm not too fond with how this chapter ended. I just don't like it, it isn't as concise as the endings usually are. I'll live with it. Thanks for reading, comment your thoughts, and look forward to the next chapter!**


	26. Chapter 26

**This chapter, this one chapter, was such an emotional roller coaster to write. I want to specifically thank MemeTeamers for this idea. It was beautiful and I can only hope I wrote it well enough for you guys to feel some emotion too. Thanks for reading and enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

I'm going to be completely honest; hosting a funeral was not how I had expected the day to end. I mean, this day could have gone in any other direction. A penguin apocalypse would have made more damn sense than this does. Yet here we are, hosting a funeral in our house while dinner is cooking in the oven. Okay, maybe I should explain what had actually happened to lead up to this…ordeal.

* * *

I had finished washing Ivan's scarf and put it through the fastest setting on the dryer. I could tell he was getting pretty uncomfortable without it on. He looked extremely relieved when I wrapped it around his neck once more. "Thank you, it smells like flowers," he comments, burying his nose into the fabric. I smile at him and start back towards the living room. Just as we get into the room, the doorbell rings and I sigh a little. It better not be the cops coming back to get Zao.

"Stay here Ivan, I'll be right back. How about you go find out what we're doing for dinner," I suggest, gently nudging him towards the kitchen door where I can hear the others. Once he's gone into the kitchen, I nod a little and head to the door. The bell rings again on my way there, annoying me a little since the person obviously isn't patient. I blink when I open the door to see Conrad on the other side. He's holding a small box and his eyes are puffy and red, like he was just recently crying. "Hey," I say quietly, not sure what's going on.

He sniffs a little and gives me a halfhearted wave. "Hey, how's it going?" he asks, his voice cracking just a bit. He clears his throat and takes a deep breath.

"Shouldn't I be asking you that? You're the one who looks like they're about to cry," I tell him, raising an eyebrow and leaning against the door frame.

He chokes out a chuckle and nods slightly. "Can you keep the sarcasm to a minimum? It's already hard enough dealing with her being gone," he retorts, glancing fleetingly at the box in his hands.

I instantly feel like a royal asshat for being insensitive. I straighten up and step closer to Conrad. "Did someone die? Are you alright?" I ask him, trying to keep my voice even. He nods and looks like he's going to burst into tears again. I hesitate before hugging him gently. "Hey, you'll be alright. If you don't mind my asking, who passed away?"

He's silent a moment as he rests his forehead on my shoulder. I don't prod him or try to force the answer out; I know he'll tell me eventually. "She was my best friend. She was always to happy and energetic. I miss Shayma so much," he whispers. I rub his back soothingly, figuring he should cry it out if he needs to.

"I'm guessing you and Shayma were close?" I ask. If I learned anything from my own experiences, talking about the person who passed is a good way to keep them alive in your heart. Yeah, it sounds like a Hallmark movie line, but it works!

I feel Conrad nod on my shoulder and hear him start to cry again. I wince a little, sort of caring about my shirt but then chiding myself for not being more sensitive right now. "She would always be so happy to see me after school each day. Shayma would just swim around in her bowl and sometimes flip in the water," he chokes out, his words a little garbled from crying.

I freeze and step away from Conrad. He is actually crying and giving me a confused look mixed with immense sadness. I look at the box in his hands and realize it's the perfect size for a fish. "I'm sorry, but did you just say she would swim excitedly in her bowl?" I ask, wondering if maybe I was just a tad delusional. Conrad nods, wiping tears away with the back of his hand. "What was Shayma?"

"My goldfish."

Of course it was a goldfish. What the hell was I thinking?! That Conrad might have actually lost someone and we could share some sort of "a-person-I-love-is-dead-and-we-can-comfort-each-other-now-and-I-won't-even-be-an-asshole-to-you-anymore" bond? No, that was completely ridiculous and I'm stupid for even thinking about it for a moment. I rub my temples, praying I don't get a headache from this. "Let me get this straight. Your goldfish dies, so you show up at my house crying and with a box that most likely has its body in it. You lead me on to believe an actual human being had died and then let me comfort you because of it. What was the goal in all of this?" I ask.

Conrad angrily wipes at his eyes once more, clearing away the tears. "Well excuse me for hoping to get some goddamn compassion! I actually cared about Shayma and was hoping you would understand the pain from me losing her!" he shouts. Conrad stands there a moment before huffing and turning around so he can walk off.

Just then, however, lightning flashes across the sky and it starts pouring rain. I sigh and realize I can't exactly let him walk home like that. "Conrad, come inside so you won't catch a cold," I tell him. He doesn't answer, just flips me off as he hunches over the box in his hands. "Dammit Conrad, get inside before I dropkick you into this house myself!"

Conrad stops and turns around, squinting a little to keep the rain out of his eyes. "I'll only come in if you play some crappy love ballad from the eighties," he says. I grin a little and pull out my phone, having the perfect song for his needs. Conrad groans as Never Gonna Give You Up starts blasting from my phone. "Did you seriously just Rick-Roll me?"

"Yes, I did. Now get your ass inside before I put it on infinite loop," I threaten, turning the volume on my phone up. Conrad groans again but makes his way back to the front door. I smile at him and turn off the music, stepping out of the way so he can come in from the pouring rain. "See, that wasn't so hard."

Conrad steps inside and I close the door after him. He's smiling again, which is probably better than him crying. Over a goldfish. "Hey, I'm going to hug you for cheering me up," he says, holding his arms out to me. I raise an eyebrow at his soaking wet clothes and shake my head. "You don't have a choice," he adds.

"You are not hugging me!" I shout, turning so I can run out of the hallway. Conrad manages to catch me before I can and hugs me from behind, effectively soaking the back of my shirt. "Come on! Let go of me please," I tell him. Conrad shakes his head I can _feel_ his smug grin as he lifts me up. I cross my arms angrily and figure I'm probably not escaping this hug anytime soon. "Can you at least carry me to the kitchen?"

"Sure thing Scones," he replies, carrying me through the living room and into the kitchen. Oliver, Ivan, and Lovino are already in there, but the others don't seem to be around. "Hey, where are the other guys?" Conrad asks, looking around the kitchen with me still being carried.

Oliver looks up from the stove and waves a little at Conrad. "They didn't want what I was cooking, so Mattie agreed to take them to some restaurant instead," he replies. I then notice the wonderful smell coming from the oven and look at Oliver,

"What are you making?" I ask curiously, attempting once more to get out of Conrad's arms. He just holds me tighter, refusing to let go.

"I decided to make tilapia," Oliver replies. Conrad unceremoniously drops me to the floor, making me land on my butt harshly. Ivan rushes over to me and holds my face in his hands.

"Mama, are you alright?" he asks worriedly.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Conrad was just being mean by dropping me," I tell him. Ivan nods and steps back so I can stand up. I get up and turn around to glare at Conrad, who is looking down at his box sadly. "You didn't have to drop me."

"Sorry if you happen to be eating fish for dinner and mine just died," he mutters. I sigh and decide this is just too much for me to rationally handle.

Oliver looks over worriedly, obviously concerned about Conrad. "Oh, I'm so sorry dearie, I wouldn't have made it if I had known. I wish I could make it up to you. Would you like to stay for dinner? Oh, wait, you probably wouldn't if we're having tilapia. Don't listen to me! Oh, I'm sorry poppet," he rambles, honestly looking sorry for making tilapia.

"It's alright Oliver. You couldn't have known. I just wish _someone_ would be more sensitive to my pain," he says, clearly aiming the remark at me. I raise an eyebrow at him, but don't say anything.

Ivan steps forward and looks up at Conrad. "We can give it a funeral here," he offers. I'm not sure where he's going with this, but hopefully it will make Conrad less annoying about my inability to show him compassion when it comes to a dead goldfish.

Oliver smiles and claps his hands together. "That's a wonderful idea! We can give your fish a little funeral," he says happily. He turns off the stove and puts a lid over the pan so it will stay warm. Oliver walks over to us and his smile widens. "Now, let's go have a funeral."

* * *

Which brings us back here. The four of us are crowded around the toilet in an upstairs bathroom. Conrad is holding the box over it and looks like he is about to cry again. "Shayma was a wonderful goldfish. I couldn't have asked for a better one. I know she'll be happy swimming around in that big bowl in the sky," he says. Conrad turns the box over and lets the goldfish fall into the toilet.

Oliver nods at me and I press play on my phone, letting Donny Boy play as Conrad flushes the toilet. Ivan is watching the water swirl until it has vanished completely, taking the fish with it. He nods a little and looks back up at us. "Shayma is gone," he says. I turn off the music and put my phone away.

"So, how long did you have Shayma for?" I ask.

"Two days."

I swear Conrad is going to be the death of me.

* * *

 **I know, your feelings have gone through something fierce. It's going to be alright, you'll survive this tear-jerking chapter. Once again, I want to thank MemeTeamers for the idea. Thanks for reading, comment your thoughts, and look forward to the next chapter!**


	27. Chapter 27

**Sorry about the wait guys! I was being sucked into the Marvel Comics Universe and I'm still trying to get over Daredevil feels while also starting Jessica Jones and yeah, it's a lot of Marvel. Anyway, here's the new chapter. Also, I've decided that this is going to be ending soon. Maybe four more chapters at the most? But definitely ending soon. Thanks for reading and enjoy the chapter!**

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I woke up in the middle of the night to angry swearing coming from outside my room. I sat up and glanced at Ivan, who was still sleeping and curled up on the other side of the bed. I slowly got out of the bed, making sure I didn't wake him up. Ivan turned in his sleep and pulled the covers closer to him. I nodded a little, glad he didn't wake up, and went into the hallway.

The kitchen light was on, a little blinding compared to the dark room I had just walked out of. The sound of pots being and pans clanging together was very clear and I began to wonder why somebody was even in the kitchen this late at night. I soon discovered that Lovi was the one making so much noise. He was in the middle of the kitchen, sitting on the floor and surrounded by pasta noodles. There was at least three boxes worth on the floor around him with two more unopened boxes on the counters. Sauce had been spilt onto the counters and was dripping onto the floor as well.

"Lovi, what happened in here?" I asked him, still taking in the mess. He looks up at me and I can see that he's crying, or was crying until I spoke. He quickly wiped away any stray tears and pretended like he hadn't been crying at all.

"I couldn't get the damn pasta to work for me," he mutters. I sigh and walk towards him. I sit down and hug him, figuring he might need one. "I don't know what the hell happened, it just didn't want to cook right."

"It's fine, we all have days where things don't go right," I tell him, rubbing his back soothingly. If I'm being completely honest, I don't really know what I'm doing. Emotions weren't exactly my best subject and dealing with other people's emotions definitely wasn't my expertise.

"I'm supposed to be the lower half of Italy for god's sake! What the hell is wrong with me if I can't make a simple pot of pasta?!" he demanded. Well, he had me there. I didn't have any sort of answer for that one.

"Guys, what are you doing up so late? And why is the kitchen such a mess?" Matthew asks from the doorway. I look up at him, grateful that someone else can help me with Lovi. He looks tired, which I'm guessing means he just got out of bed, and is analyzing the disaster area formerly known as a kitchen.

"Lovi couldn't get the pasta to work for him," I say, sounding a little unsure myself. It's the only explanation I have, so it'll have to be good enough. Matthew nods and comes into the kitchen so he can sit across from us on the floor.

"Is it really about the pasta?" he asks, looking at Lovi. He rests his head in his palm and supports it by putting his elbow on his knee.

"Of course it's about the damn pasta! What the hell else would this be about?!" Lovi shoots back. He looks angrier than sad now and he crosses his arms. I sigh and let go of him, not exactly wanting that anger to be turned on me.

"Really? I don't think it's about the pasta. I think this is about you missing people we've lost," Matthew counters. He's somehow managing to sound understanding but firm, something I couldn't do if I tried.

Lovi is silent for a moment, like he's trying to deny the words to himself before denying them to Matthew. "So what if I miss people? It's not a bad thing! I'm allowed to miss my brothers and my mother and even that German bastard!" he yells. Lovi starts crying again but doesn't bother wiping the tears away this time.

"We all miss them Lovi. You didn't have to keep the emotions penned up inside you," Matthew says. Lovi nods a little and refocuses his gaze to the ground.

"I just want to be able to see them again. I want to see one of them at least," he whispers. I bite my lip and start wondering if there's anything I can do.

"Lovi, what if I could convince Aunt Kiki to come out for a visit. I could ask her, at least," I offer. Lovi looks up at me, a look of disbelief on his face. I smile softly at him, to show that I really do mean it. He nods, slowly at first but it picks up speed, and hugs me tightly. I hug him back for a moment. "Well, let me go call her real quick," I say, getting up from the floor and walking out of the kitchen.

I walk into the living room and sit on the couch, pulling my phone out of my pocket. I scroll through my contacts before coming to Auntie's and pressing the call button. As it rings, I realize it's super late in England and that she might still be asleep. "Dear, what are you calling so late for?" she asks groggily after picking up. It's dark on her end of the phone, which I assume means that she's in her room.

"Sorry for calling so late Auntie, but I've got a favor to ask you," I explain. I wait for her to sit up in her bed, turn on a lamp, and position her phone so I can see her face. "Lovi is really missing the units that didn't wake up and he's missing grandmother too. It's so bad that he couldn't even make pasta right. So, I was wondering if you'd be able to come down and visit for a while," I tell her.

She's silent for a moment and I start to wonder if she's going to decline the offer. "I don't see why not. It's not like the other old ladies will miss me kicking their butts at bridge," she replies, smiling at me through the screen.

My smile widens and I nod excitedly. "That's wonderful! How about you get here this weekend?" I ask. She nods in agreement and I can tell she's already thinking of what she's going to pack. "I'll go let Lovi know and let you get more sleep. Love you, Auntie, I'll talk with you soon," I tell her. I hang up after she nods. Immediately, I get up from the couch and head for the kitchen, happy to be delivering good news.

* * *

 **Yay! Next chapter will have Kiki in it! Thanks for reading, comment your thoughts, and look forward to the next chapter!**


	28. Chapter 28

**So, this time, I was majorly distracted by Markiplier videos. I'm sorry guys, I keep getting distracted so easily! Again, sorry about the wait on this chapter. Thanks for reading and enjoy!**

* * *

I was starting to think the airport couldn't possibly get busier. Allen and I were waiting by the gate Aunt Kiki was supposed to be arriving from and there were people swarming around us. Seriously, I felt like a sardine because of all the people. I glanced towards the men's restroom, which is where Gilbert and Ivan had gone. Ivan had needed to go and, since he was too old to go into the women's restroom with me, Gilbert had volunteered to take him. "Calm down, doll. Gil knows what he's doing. Most of the time," Allen says.

"Thanks, Allen, that really helps. No, really, that makes me feel so much better," I reply, sarcasm dripping off my words like honey. Allen rolls his eyes and ignores me, choosing to watch the gate instead. "Sorry, I'm just worried. The flight being three hours late isn't exactly calming news."

Allen chuckles and ruffles my hair. "Like I said, just calm down. The plane will get here when it gets here. Ain't no use in rushing it," he says. I swat his hand away and smooth my hair down.

"You used a double negative again. You just said there is use in rushing it," I point out, grinning smugly at him.

"It's just the way I talk, doll. Most Southerners talk like that too," he counters. I don't really have an argument for that, so I just stay silent instead. Allen grins victoriously, knowing he's won by my silence.

I look back at the restrooms and see Gilbert making his way through the crowd. He's holding Ivan in one arm and using his other to push people aside while he goes. When he finally gets to us, he's flushed a needs a moment to catch his breath. "Sorry it took so long! Trying to get back through that crowd was so unawesome," Gilbert says, passing Ivan over to me.

"It's fine, you managed to make it back in one piece and that's what matters," I tell him. Ivan rests his head on my shoulder, which lets me know how tired he is. "Don't worry Ivan, I'm sure the plane will get here soon."

"Can I sleep until it does?" he asks. I smile at him and nod, which leads to him closing his eyes and falling asleep almost instantly.

"I guess Ivan's down for the count. How much longer do you think this will end up taking?" I ask, looking up at Allen and Gilbert. They both shrug and I shake my head. "You two might be the most helpful people I've ever known," I mutter under my breath.

"It can't possibly be too much longer! Besides, just think how awesome it'll be when the plane finally does get here," Gilbert points out. I sigh and look towards the attendants' desk, which is surrounded by angry people shouting at the poor man behind the counter.

"Allen, what time is it? If it's not too late, then we should get something to eat," I say.

Allen pulls out his phone and says, "It's twelve past one."

"I saw a restaurant close to the restrooms that wasn't too crowded. We should try over there," Gilbert suggests. I nod and take a deep breath, steeling myself for going through the crowd. Allen and Gilbert follow me as I elbow my way through the crowd. I make sure to keep a firm grip on Ivan since these people tend to elbow back. We come into a clear area after a few minutes and stop for a moment to catch our breath.

"Some of them girls were getting pretty handsy," Allen comments. I look at him and realize his clothes are wrinkled like people were grabbing at them. I can't help but laugh at him and it makes Allen and Gilbert start laughing too.

"Hey, Allen, I think someone put a piece of paper into your jacket," I tell him, gesturing to the pocket with paper sticking out. He pulls it out and starts laughing even harder.

"It's somebody's number, but they didn't put a name," he explains, turning the paper so Gilbert and I can see that someone wrote their number down. The only thing missing, however, was a name to go with it.

"You should hold onto it. Might be entertaining to call the number if we're bored," Gilbert says. Allen nods and stuffs it back into his pocket. I look at Gilbert since he's the one who knows where the restaurant is. "It's over here," he says, leading the way for us.

The restaurant turns out to be like a pub, which I'm perfectly fine with. "We're getting a booth. I can't sit at a bar and still hold Ivan," I tell them. Allen nods and leads us towards a booth since this is a seat yourself kind of place. "Thanks, guys, hopefully, this will make the time go by quicker."

We spent an hour and a half in the restaurant, even though it didn't feel like that much time had passed. "Should we head back to the gate now? The plane might be coming in soon," Gilbert says, glancing in the direction of the exit.

"Yeah, we probably should. I don't think it would be a good idea to let Aunt Kiki wait for too long," I reply. I pick up Ivan, who had been sleeping next to me while we ate, and scooted my way out of the booth. I wait for Allen and Gilbert to get up from their seats in the booth and we make our way back to the gate.

"I think that plane coming in might be it," Allen says, using his height to see over the people. I can just barely make out a plane in the distance that's driving up to the line of gates. A grin forms when the plane heads straight for our gate and I'm glad we made it before the plane actually got here.

It takes another hour for the attendants to actually start letting people off the plane. Even then, Aunt Kiki is one of the last people off the plane. It's not all bad, though, since the crowd had definitely thinned out and it was actually possible to move around. My smile gets wider when Aunt Kiki gets off the plane and I head straight for her. "Auntie! I'm so glad you're here!" I tell her.

She instantly wraps me in a hug, making sure to be mindful of Ivan. "Hello darling, I feel like it's been so long," she says. She looks up and sees Allen and Gilbert and smiles even more. "It's just not fair that you two haven't aged a day and here I am all wrinkled and grey-haired," she tells them.

"Geez, don't make me feel bad about not being able to age! It's not like I can control that shit," Allen says, defending himself even though he's smiling. Gilbert looks like he's about to cry and laugh at the same time.

"It's been a long time Kiki," he says. Aunt Kiki smiles softly and lets go of me. She walks over to the two boys and gives them both a tight hug, making them smile even brighter than before. She pulls away and smiles happily at them.

"Now, I do believe we've got a lot of catching up to do."

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 **And there it was! Yep, new chapter done. But seriously though, crowded airports suck! And I always feel bad for the attendants when a flight is late because they always get swarmed by a huge crowd of rude people and it sucks for them. I hope you enjoyed the chapter, thanks for reading, comment your thoughts, and look forward to the next one!**


	29. Chapter 29

**Howdy everybody! I've got a chapter for ya! Thanks for reading and enjoy the chapter!**

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I'm pretty sure, if Aunt Kiki hadn't been as old as she is, she would have been knocked over by Lovi, Oliver, and Matthew two seconds after walking into the house. Instead, she was tightly hugged and her shirt was covered in tears of joy. None of them, by the way, came from Lovi. None at all. Okay, maybe half of them had come from Lovi, but that's just the amount of tears he would fess up to. I'm positive he and Oliver could have had a contest for most tears cried.

"Oh, this place hasn't changed at all," Aunt Kiki says, looking around the living room fondly. She was currently sitting on the couch with everyone crowded around her. Well, everyone except for Ivan, Zao, and I. Ivan and Zao haven't known her for more than two hours and I had decided the others deserve time with her over me.

"We can't exactly change much if we're asleep for so damn long," Lovi points out, giving a quarter to Oliver. He's sitting on Aunt Kiki's right while Matthew is sitting on her left. Oliver is sitting next to Lovi, which leaves Allen and Gilbert standing to the sides of the couch. I'm sitting with Zao and Ivan on the other couch next to them.

"Lovino, that's no way to speak around Kiki when she's just got here," Oliver chides, looking as annoyed as he can with Lovi. Lovi looks like he regrets it for a moment and nods.

"Please, don't scold Lovi for that. I missed hearing him curse all the time. I missed all of you a lot," Aunt Kiki tells them. She's had the hugest smile on her face since she got here, which seems to only be getting bigger as she speaks with them. "Now, have you guys been in the game room since waking up?"

"There's a game room?" I ask, thinking of the virtual reality helmet systems most people use. It's pretty cool, but was disastrous when they were first sold to the masses. A lot of people got their brainwaves messed up and it was a disaster. Now, though, they're the only thing people ever use for gaming. I notice Zao and Ivan also perked up when she mentioned the game room.

"Yeah, it's upstairs," Allen says, gesturing towards the staircase that leads to the second story. "Isn't there a pool up there too or something?" he asks, looking at Aunt Kiki.

"I believe so. It's been a while, though, so I can't remember if it was up there or out back," she replies. I shake my head, amazed that I hadn't thought to go upstairs and look around. Well, I can't be blamed too much; I was busy trying to figure everything out when I got here.

Zao looks at the staircase and then back to the group. "I'm going to go check it out," he announces, jumping up from the couch and running up the stairs. I watch him go up and glance down at Ivan, who is also looking at the staircase with obvious interest.

"Let's all go to the game room. I'm sure everything is still working," Matthew suggests.

"That sounds like so much fun! Tell me, is the pool table still in there? I've learned a thing or two since the last time I was here," Aunt Kiki says, getting up from the couch and making her way towards the stairs. Everyone follows behind her like a procession and I further realize how much they actually missed her. They're all treating her like she might disappear again if they say or do something wrong.

"Mama, are we going with them?" Ivan asks, looking up at me from his spot on my lap. I break out of my thoughts and nod, holding onto him as I stand up and follow them up the stairs. Aunt Kiki leads us to the second door on the right. It has a large, green "X" over it, a symbol I don't recognize but Aunt Kiki does and it makes her laugh. She opens the door and I have to wait for everyone to file in before I can get a good look at it.

There's a pool, air hockey, and foosball table in one corner of the room. In another is a large bookcase, filled with board games and decks of cards, with a few tables next to it. Against the wall between those corners is a large desk with various computer screens on it, all of which are hooked up to each other. Against the other wall is a huge screen with a ton of wires connecting ancient looking consoles to it. There's a long couch, long enough to fit all of us comfortably, placed right in front of the screen.

Zao is already fiddling with one of the consoles. It's like a thin, white box with a single slit for the game itself. "Here, let me turn it on," Gilbert says, walking over and pressing a button on the console. He then grabs a remote and turns on the screen. It pops up to a screen that shows game characters in race cars and the words "Mario Kart 8" spread across the screen. "Woah, I didn't realize we'd left this in there," Gilbert mutters to himself.

Allen grins and grabs a controller, which looks like a white version of the screen remote with fewer buttons, and plops down on the couch. Aunt Kiki gets two more and gives one to me while Lovi gets the last controller. "Boys, I suggest we play Rainbow Road," Aunt Kiki says. She pulls me over to the couch and sits me down next to her. Ivan adjusts in my lap so my arms are around him and I can still hold the controller.

Allen and Lovi groan in unison. "That track is a nightmare! And you always beat us at it," Allen complains.

"Are you two scared of losing to an old woman, who hasn't played in decades, and a teenager who's never played this before?" she asks them, pretty much accusing them of being cowards.

"Hell no, let's play some damn Mario Kart," Lovi replies instantly. He hits a button on his controller and the screen changes to a character chart. I hit the A button on mine and my controller comes up as player two. Aunt Kiki is player three, which leaves Allen as player four. Lovi picks some guy in all red as his character and then chooses a motorcycle for him. I choose a little lizard guy and decide to give him an actual race car. Aunt Kiki goes for some princess named after a fruit and gives her a motorcycle. Allen chooses a guy in yellow and gives him a motorcycle too, leaving me feeling like I may have chosen the wrong car.

By now, everyone else has taken a seat on the couch and is watching the screen intently. Lovi picks a track called Rainbow Road and my stomach drops when I see the loops and turns and everything else. The race starts and I hit buttons on the controller until I get to the one that makes the car go. Matthew is encouraging Lovi, Gilbert is cheering on Allen, Oliver is firmly rooting for Aunt Kiki, and Zao is cheering for me along with Ivan.

Needless to say, I ended up dying quite a few times and came in fourth place. We ended up playing a few more times and I came in first once. Just once, but it was a hard-earned victory! I looked around and smiled brightly at seeing everyone happier than I've ever known them to be.

It was definitely a good idea to have Aunt Kiki come out for a visit.

* * *

 **Let's be honest, who else button mashes when they're playing video games? Lord knows I do. Also, Rainbow Road is obviously the love child of our worst nightmares and the boss of all video game bosses. Seriously, that shit it hard. Thanks for reading, comment your thoughts, and look forward to the next chapter!**


	30. Chapter 30

**I had today off school, so I was able to update! Yay! IMPORTANT WORDS: There is mention of drug and substance abuse in this chapter. _DO NOT DO DRUGS!_ Seriously, that shit will mess you up and it's a shame when it happens. Thanks for reading and enjoy the chapter.**

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It's the second day of Aunt Kiki's visit and I'm stuck in a courthouse instead of spending it with her. Yeah, this is exactly how I wanted to spend my day. I wasn't even in the courtroom either; they had me waiting out in the hallway while the trial was conducted. I hadn't even brought Ivan with me since the courts didn't allow small children. Aunt Kiki and Oliver were looking after him, which was good because it gave him a chance to get to know my aunt.

I groaned and sunk so low on the bench my back was on the seat instead of my butt. I blew hair out of my face and stared at the ceiling, wishing for the trial to get done with sooner. "Excuse me, love, but is this seat taken?" a voice asks. I look over to see an elderly woman, older than Aunt Kiki for sure, with her hair dyed black, purple, and blue. She had on a band shirt and jeans and I could see a sleeve tattoo on both arms.

"Oh, yeah, it's fine. Please, take a seat," I replied, sitting up quickly so I didn't embarrass myself anymore. The woman smiled at me and sat down on the other side of the bench. She seemed nice enough and wasn't as intimidating as her appearance could have made her out to be. I forced myself to sit still and focus on one point on the wall across the room.

"So, what are you here for?" she asks, looking at me. I wondered if I would be able to answer that without her judging me too harshly, even though it was Zao's fault and not mine.

"Uh, my friend is on trial for selling drugs in the middle of the mall," I reply, chuckling nervously and rubbing the back of my head. Dear lord, I've only known this woman for five seconds and she probably already thinks I'm bad news.

"Oh really? My grandson is here for buying drugs in the mall," she replies, laughing a little. I blink and, for about two seconds, entertain the thought of Zao being her grandson. Of course, that's definitely not true, but it crossed my mind. "He's in that courtroom over there," she adds, pointing to the double doors opposite the bench we're on.

I can't help but laugh with her, finding this whole thing coincidental. "My friend's in the room next to us. I'd be there too, but they said I couldn't be present for some reason," I explain, gesturing to the room next to us. She's smiling now and, for some reason, she starts to look oddly familiar. Not like I've ever met her, but like I have seen her before. I just don't know where from but I feel like it's on the tip of my tongue.

She nods a bit, casting a fleeting glance towards the door her grandson is in. "A few years back they put limits on the courts and such. Now, for non-jury trials, only the court officials are allowed inside. Everyone else has to wait outside so they don't get in the way of things," she explains.

Well, I guess that makes some sense, but it's still weird. "That doesn't stop this whole experience from being the slightest bit boring. I mean, before you showed up, I was starting to wonder if it could get any more boring," I replied truthfully.

She laughs again, almost like she's been through all of this before. "Yes, I could tell from the way you were sliding off the bench. I'm used to this, though, since I take my grandson to these all the time. You know, I never got caught buying or using drugs when I was his age, but I guess there's nothing I can do about it."

I blinked and looked this woman over again. It was hard to believe such a nice woman, despite her initial appearance, could have done drugs. "I'm sorry if this seems rude, but you don't exactly seem the type to do drugs," I tell her. She laughs again and waves me off dismissively.

"Oh no, I mostly used pot, but I had LSD once. I had to quit the stuff halfway through college and have managed to not get back into it," she explains.

"Well, why do you allow your grandson to do drugs? I don't mean to offend you in any way, I just don't really understand."

"Tell me, dear, have you ever done drugs?" she asks in response. I shake my head and she smiles softly. "Well, the first time you do them is when you get hooked. Now, people have two kinds of family members. The ones that forbid and ignore the problem and leads their drug users to go to unsafe places and doing unsafe things. Then you have the ones that figure the user should learn from this. Those are the ones that give their users safe places to do what they do. Nobody dies of an OD, normally, and they don't get diseases from shared needles. I figure, let my grandson do stupid shit now so he won't later."

I stay silent after that, allowing my brain to process what the woman said. It made sense, it did, but at the same time, I didn't want it to. It didn't make sense that a family would just let it happen. I spent a good few minutes contemplating that and found I just didn't have an answer to it. She didn't say anything else either and the silence lasted for another hour. It was only broken by Zao coming out of the doors next to our bench.

"(Y/N), I got off with a warning and small fee," he announces proudly. He's grinning hugely and standing with his hands on his hips like he'd just won the lottery. I sigh and stand up, rolling my eyes at him.

"Come on, let's just get going home. I'm sure Aunt Kiki is wondering what's taking so long," I tell him. I turn around and notice the woman is scrutinizing me, looking me up and down with renewed interest. "I'm sorry, but we must be going now. It was nice meeting you Ms…" I trail off, not knowing her name.

She stands up and takes my hands in hers, smiling at me. "Kiersten. My name's Kiersten," she replies. Again, I feel like I've seen that name somewhere but I just can't place it.

"Well, it was nice to meet you, Ms. Kiersten. I hope we run across one another again sooner or later," I tell her. She nods and lets go of my hands so Zao and I can get going. We wave to each other as Zao and I walk towards the entrance of the courthouse. "I hope you know you're still going to be doing the chores for the next month," I say to Zao.

He groans and gives me puppy dog eyes, really not wanting to do the chores anymore. "Come on! I won't sell drugs again, I promise. Just don't make me do the chores anymore," he whines. I stay silent as we walk into the parking lot and head to the car. "Who was that woman anyway?" Zao asks after we're both in the car.

I shrug my shoulders and focus on the road since I sometimes find myself veering towards the wrong side of the road. "I'm not sure. She looked really familiar, though. It's almost like I'd seen a picture of her somewhere," I reply. The second those words come from my mouth I realize I had seen a picture of her. On the plane ride here when I was going through that photo album. She had been in the picture of grandmother and Conrad's grandfather.

Knowing this only made me look forward to seeing Kiersten again even more. She seemed like such a nice person. Maybe Aunt Kiki would know how to contact her. I guess I'll just have to ask when we get home.

* * *

 **Yeah, we get a short appearance by someone from the previous story. I thought it was a nice little chapter to insert there. Thanks for reading, comment your thoughts, and look forward to the next chapter!**


	31. Chapter 31 (FINAL CHAPTER)

_**THIS IS THE FINAL CHAPTER!**_ **After much deliberation with myself and reading this story all over again, I have decided this is going to be the last chapter. I ended everything pretty well, wrapped a few things up, and had a happy ending to it all. I just want to thank you all for reading this and enjoy the final chapter!**

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It's been a few days since I met Kiersten at the courthouse. A lot has happened in those days too. Well, maybe not a lot, but important stuff did happen. Aunt Kiki decided she'd stay with us in America, instead of going back to England. I was honestly confused by her decision, but she explained it by saying she couldn't bear to leave the others again. I've decided that I won't question her decision, considering it means I get to be with her longer.

Second, Conrad officially asked, and took, me on another date. Okay, maybe this was earlier today, but I'm still counting it as something that's happened in the past few dates. It was a huge surprise, honestly, to see him on our doorstep again. I had blinked once and stepped out before closing the door behind me. "Hey, did you have another goldfish to flush?" I ask.

Conrad laughs and shakes his head, somehow making me notice the light blush on his face. Wait, why is he blushing like that? I don't think he's blushed around me before. "No, that wasn't why I came by. I actually wanted to ask you something," he replies. I hum and raise an eyebrow, half expecting some ridiculous request from him. He clears his throat and rubs the back of his neck before saying, "I was wondering if you wanted to get coffee sometime."

I stay quiet for a moment and found myself smiling a little. "Yeah, that sounds like fun," I reply. Conrad looked up at me, obviously surprised I had agreed so easily. "Don't get too excited. I'm mostly going for the free coffee. When would this be?"

"Right now, actually."

I glance at the door next to me and nod a little. "I think that will work. Let me just tell everyone I'll be out for a while. I'll be right back," I promise. Conrad nods before I go back inside and tell Matthew, who happened to be in the living room, that I'll be out for a bit.

The date went pretty well, especially since we weren't interrupted by "sneaky" units this time. By the time it was over, Conrad and I had scheduled another date for next week. He walked me up to the doorstep and we both stopped in front of the door. "That was fun, Scones. Thanks for coming with me," he says.

"It wasn't a problem. I had fun too," I tell him. Conrad grins and I gladly return the smile, not realizing we had allowed an awkward silence to settle over us. I cleared my throat and said, "Well, I guess I should be getting inside." He nods and is about to say goodbye when I kiss him on the cheek and disappear behind the door.

Yeah, I know all of that sounds cheesy, but it was actually pretty sweet. I never realized how nice it would be when I'm not reading about dating in books and calling it unrealistic. This was the reason I was smiling as I went into the living room. I stopped and looked at the sight of everybody sitting around the coffee table in there and looking through some books.

"Oh, poppet, you're back. How was the coffee date?" Oliver asks, looking up and smiling at me. Ivan looks up and jumps down from Matthew's lap so he can run over to me.

"Mama, can you pick me up?" he asks. I smile and pick him up, holding him in my arms.

"It went pretty well this time around," I reply. I look over the group of them again and shake my head. "What are you guys doing?" I ask.

"We're looking through scrapbooks," Matthew tells me. I nod and walk over, sitting on the other couch with Allen and Zao.

"We haven't looked through this in so long. It's a damn shame too, some of these pictures are hilarious," Lovino adds, flipping the page of one scrapbook and looking at those pictures. I pull one of the scrapbooks towards me and start going through the pages. One has pictures of grandmother and Aunt Kiki when they were a lot younger. Aunt Kiki looks to be five and grandmother looks like an older teen. They're both wearing party hats and grandmother's holding the camera high enough to get both of them and a cake into the picture.

There are a lot more like that. Mostly grandmother and Aunt Kiki alone with grandmother holding the camera. One at the park, another in front of an elementary school, and yet another with both sitting on a statue. I smile fondly at the pictures and quickly get through the whole scrapbook.

"Hey, why don't we start our own scrapbook?" Allen asks, looking around the room.

"Sounds like an awesome idea! I can take the pictures," Gilbert offers.

"You've got to be in it too, ya know. We can take turns with the pictures," Zao tells him. Gilbert nods, like he hadn't considered that, and grins widely.

"Guys, we can take group selfies with my phone, print them out, and make the scrapbooks that way," I point out.

"That sounds like a wonderful idea!" Oliver exclaims.

"Then what are we sitting around for? Everybody up! We're taking the first picture now," Aunt Kiki orders. We all get up and crowd in front of the coffee table. I'm standing next to Aunt Kiki with Ivan in my arms. On the other side of me is Zao and Oliver while Lovi and Matthew are next to Aunt Kiki. Allen and Gilbert, as the tallest people, are bringing up the rear.

"Everybody smile!" I tell them. I hold my phone up and take a few pictures of us smiling and making funny faces. After we took the pictures, Oliver suddenly remembered dinner had to be made and the others had things to do as well. Ivan stayed with me and we went to my room. He and I looked at the pictures we had just taken, smiling brightly and knowing there would be so many more to take in the future.

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 **Ah, can you feel that final chapter feeling? It feels pretty damn good. Another story over and done. I don't know when I'll be posting my next story, considering the hectic exams week that's coming up, but it should be before May ends (?). I hope it will be. So, for the final time on this story, thank you so much for staying loyal and reading, comment your thoughts on everything, and enjoy your life as best you can!**


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